Police: Man pointed gun at customer’s face inside Publix

A 73-year-old man was waiting in line at the deli counter of an Orlando Publix store on Saturday, when he noticed the man next in line was glaring at him.

“Sir, what can I do for you?” the shopper asked the staring man, according to a police report. “Do we know each other?”

That’s when the other man stepped back, drew a handgun and aimed it at the shopper’s face.

“You don’t want to [expletive] with me,” the gunwielding man said, according to the shopper’s account. The shopper backed up with his hands raised. Then, the gunman slipped the weapon under his shirt, before walking away.

The incident prompted a commotion at the Kirkman Road store, with customers and employees fleeing as word spread of a man with a gun, police said. No one was hurt, but investigators are seeking the public’s help to identify the gunman, who was wearing a mask and gloves.

The incident happened just before 6 p.m. at 4606 S. Kirkman Rd. Multiple callers told 911 operators there was a man with a gun inside the store.

Publix employees described the victim as a regular at the store and said the gunman seemed “furious.” Surveillance video matched the victim’s account and showed the gunman had his finger on the trigger “[d]uring the entire encounter,” Officer John Dalles’ report said.

The man was wearing a white baseball hat with sunglasses on it, a blue surgical mask, a dark blue shortsleeved shirt with “FILA” on it, blue jeans, blue surgical gloves and dark gray shoes with black laces.

While he has not been apprehended, confusion inside the store prompted police to track down another man they determined wasn’t involved.

Amid the commotion, a Publix employee saw a similar-looking man to the gunman walking with his hand rested on a gun in his waistband, the report said. The employee recounted that observation to Dalles and gave a description of that man’s vehicle.

An Orange County Sheriff ’s Office helicopter found the vehicle at an extended stay hotel on Major Boulevard, where officers confronted him.

They later determined, using the surveillance video, that he was not involved. The man was legally carrying a concealed weapon inside the store when the scare at Publix happened, according to Orlando police.