Police in Missouri identified the armed suspect that entered a Springfield Walmart on Thursday as 20-year-old Dmitriy Nickolayvich Andreychenko, who was reportedly stopped at gunpoint by an off-duty firefighter before being taken into custody by police.
Andreychenko was booked into the Greene County Jail at around 9:14 p.m. on an arresting charge of making a terroristic threat in the first degree, according to booking information from the Greene County Sheriff’s Office.
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Police in Missouri identified the armed suspect that entered a Springfield Walmart on Thursday as 20-year-old Dmitriy Nickolayvich Andreychenko, who was reportedly stopped at gunpoint by a former firefighter before being taken into custody by police. (Greene County Sheriff’s Office)
The suspect was taken into custody by Springfield police after he allegedly entered a local Walmart at around 4:10 p.m. while armed and dressed in what appeared to be tactical gear.
He reportedly grabbed a shopping cart and began pushing it around while recording himself on a phone, Springfield’s KYTV reported. After being alerted to this, the store manager pulled a fire alarm and shoppers fled.
Andreychenko posted this picture to his now-private Instagram less than a week before Thursday’s incident. (Dmitriy Nickolayvich Andreychenko/ Instagram)
Police say Andreychenko also attempted to exit the store but was met by an armed off-duty fireman. The unidentified man detained the suspect until officers arrived on the scene and were able to take him into police custody.
Reports said that Andreychenko was armed with a loaded gun and more than 100 rounds of ammunition.
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Andreychenko was booked into the Greene County Jail at around 9:14 p.m. on an arresting charge of making a terroristic threat in the first degree. (Dmitriy Nickolayvich Andreychenko/ Facebook)
Springfield police Lt. Mike Lucas told KYTV that the suspect’s intent was “to cause chaos.”
“He certainly had the capability and the potential to harm people. And then what has happened in Texas and Dayton and all that kind of stuff the last seven days, that is on everybody’s mind,” he added
Reports said that Andreychenko was armed with a loaded gun and more than 100 rounds of ammunition. (Dmitriy Nickolayvich Andreychenko/ Instagram)
It wasn’t immediately clear if Andreychenko told cops why he was at the store, however, the incident comes five days after a mass shooting at a Walmart store in El Paso, Texas, that resulted in 22 deaths.
Andreychenko posted several videos to his now-private Instagram account where he’s seen firing several guns. (Dmitriy Nickolayvich Andreychenko/ Instagram)
According to a Facebook page that appeared to be Andreychenko’s, he is originally from Portland, Oregon but lives with his wife in Springfield. He studied EMS/EMT at Ozarks Technical Community College. Paulina Dedaj is a writer/ reporter for Fox News.
