A truck driver was shot and killed by an off duty police officer at a Costco on Sunday after the driver entered the store with a gun, threatening patrons and employees.
The incident happened on Sunday, November 26th at the Costco in Lenexa, Kansas.
According to Fox 4 KC, around 11 a.m. on Sunday morning, 58-year-old Ronald O. Hunt pulled into the Costco parking lot with a trailer-less Swift Transportation truck, exited the vehicle, and began “screaming loudly and threatening people” as he walked to the front of the store.
Hunt then entered the store and, once far inside the building, began threatening people again, screaming and pointing a gun at shoppers and employees. That’s when off-duty police officer Michael Howell, who happened to be shopping at the Costco that day, engaged Hunt, eventually shooting and killing him inside of the store.
No other injuries were reported in the incident and officials are still searching for a motive.
“It does not appear that he had any specific targets… Although many witnesses said Hunt threatened them with his gun, there is not yet any indication that Hunt ever fired his weapon ” said Lenexa Police Public Relations Officer Danny Chavez.
“His actual motive — why that Costco, why that time, what he was intending to do — we’re still trying to learn that,” Chavez continued.
So far in their investigations, officials have located only 1 of Hunt’s relatives. That person, who lives in California, says that the two “were not close.”
The only home address found listed for Hunt is that of the Swift Transportation Terminal in Edwardsville, Kansas. Hunt last used this address on court records back in 2015 when he was cited for an overweight load, leading officials to believe that the truck driver has been living out of his truck for some time.
Press release on Costco incident. pic.twitter.com/gbNiz2kEMp
— Terry Zeigler (@KCKPDChief) November 27, 2017
The Edwardsville Swift Terminal has yet to return any phone calls regarding Hunt and the incident.
Police are still reviewing surveillance video, interviewing witnesses, and collecting evidence as they investigate the case.
