Police: Armed worker took hostages, fatally shot at Wal-Mart
AMARILLO, Texas (AP) — Officers fatally shot an armed man inside a Wal-Mart store in Amarillo on Tuesday after he took two people hostage, including a manager with whom he had a work-related dispute, according to police.
Amarillo police identified the suspect as 54-year-old store employee Mohammad Moghaddam and said neither hostage was injured. Police said the incident began over a dispute related to a promotion and called the incident a "workplace violence event," adding that investigators had no reason to believe it was tied to terrorism.
Officers responded to a reported shooting at the store around 11 a.m., amid reports that an armed person was inside and may have had hostages. Police later said officers made their way inside the store and that a police SWAT crew shot the suspect, though they didn't immediately say whether the man had died. No other injuries were reported.
In a brief statement late Tuesday afternoon, police confirmed that Moghaddam had been fatally shot. Police said Moghaddam had a work-related dispute with a manager he took hostage.
Wal-Mart spokesman Brian Nick released a statement earlier Tuesday saying all store associates and customers were safe. Nick thanked officers, saying: "This was a very difficult situation and we are thankful for the quick response from law enforcement."
Authorities said the investigation was ongoing in Amarillo, a city in the Texas Panhandle. Some nearby streets were closed as a precaution during the incident, including an off ramp to Interstate 27.
The city released a statement earlier in the day, saying only that emergency officials were on the scene of an "active shooter incident."