FLORIDA — A man was arrested after allegedly making threats inside a Publix store and being found with a loaded firearm and drugs, according to police.
The incident happened just before 10 a.m. Monday at the Homestead Town Square Shopping Center along North Homestead Boulevard, according to the Homestead Police Department.
Police Chief Mario Knapp said officers responded after receiving reports that a man threatened to shoot a customer inside the store. The suspect, identified as 29-year-old Ashton Cawley of Miami Gardens, was located inside a bathroom stall.
Body camera video showed officers ordering Cawley to the ground before taking him into custody. Authorities said officers recovered a loaded 9mm handgun with both a regular and extended magazine, along with bags of suspected marijuana and a digital scale from a backpack left in the stall.
Officials said the situation could have been more serious, noting the suspect has a criminal history.
Cawley faces a charge of armed cannabis possession with intent to sell. He appeared before a judge Tuesday and was granted a $1,000 bond.
As of Tuesday afternoon, he remained in custody at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
The investigation remains ongoing.
