Standoff at store ends with man in custody

An armed man who was barricaded inside a Homegoods store in Alpharetta was taken into custody Tuesday after a standoff with SWAT.

The man allegedly brandished a gun and issued threats, prompting evacuations at the store and nearby businesses on North Point Parkway just south of North Point Mall, according to Alpharetta police. He eventually was led out of the building in handcuffs and a medical mask. His name and charges were not released.

No shots were fired and no one was reported injured, but at least two other stores were also evacuated as police, fire and SWAT teams made camp in the shopping center’s parking lot.

“We do have the active scene contained ,” al ph ar et ta police Lt. Andrew Splawn told reporters from the scene. Store employees told Channel 2 Action News that chaos ensued when a voice came over the store loudspeaker telling everyone to “run” and “get out.”

According to Channel 2, the gunman is a disgruntled former employee.

“The manager came out of the office and she just told us, all of us, to run,” an unnamed employee told the news station.

“The store was open, there was customers in the store, and we ran.” Police arrived on scene within two minutes of the first 911 call, Splawn said.

He could not confirm if the armed man was connected to the store, but it was not a hostage situation, according to Splawn.

“There were people taking cover to barricade themselves for safety, but as police officers were sweeping and searching the building, we were able to get everyone out safely,” he said.