Man arrested after entering Springdale Target, threatening employees with steak knife
SPRINGDALE, Ohio September 6 2019
A man is in custody after he walked into a Target in Springdale and threatened two employees with a knife, officials with the store said.
The situation began around 1 p.m. at the Target on East Kemper Road when an employee called 911 saying a man entered the store and threatened two employees while armed with what police said was a steak knife. The man then barricaded himself inside the store, Target officials said.
Store officials said that’s when employees and customers were evacuated from the store.
Police said officers attempted to negotiate with the suspect and used a Taser on him, but it did not take effect. A SWAT team was then called in and negotiated with the suspect, who then dropped the knife and was arrested at around 2 p.m.
Police have identified the suspect as Landen Whitehead, 26, of Cincinnati.
Whitehead was charged with inducing panic and aggravated menacing. He was taken to the Hamilton County Justice Center.
There are no reports of injuries, police said.
There is no word on why the man barricaded himself inside.
See the full statement from Target below:
At Target, the safety and security of our team and guests is our top priority. Just after noon today, a man came inside our Springdale, OH, store and threatened two team members with a knife. Our security team immediately called law enforcement for support and safely evacuated all guests and team members from the store. Police arrived within minutes and were able to successfully de-escalate the situation and apprehend the man. We’re thankful that there were no injuries and are working quickly to get counselors to the store for our team. We’ll provide law enforcement with whatever is needed for their investigation and want to thank the Springdale Police Department for their quick response.
WLWT
