Machete Attack Reported in Publix Parking Lot

An elderly man allegedly chased another man in a Publix parking lot with a machete late last month.

According to the Gwinnett County police report, a man was driving his car through the Publix parking lot at 4054 Five Forks Trickum Road around 11:50 a.m. Jan. 28. An elderly looking man walked in front of his vehicle and yelled, "Are you blind? Are you trying to kill me?"

The driver apologized, but told him that no one should walk in front of moving cars. The driver parked and began walking to the front of the store, but then the walker decided to get into his own car. According to the victim, the man started driving erratically through the parking lot and stopped suddenly behind the victim's parked car.

The victim walked over to try to calm him down, but then the suspect pulled out a large machete as he was getting out of the van. He approached the victim and attempted to strike him with it, so he ran from the suspect to avoid being hit. He wasn't hit, but they continued the chase for one lap around the van.

After the suspect noticed the incident had gained an audience in the parking lot, he got back into his vehicle and fled the scene at a high speed.

Witnesses gave stories similar to the victim's. One witness told police that the suspect even said, "I'm going to kill you," during the chase.

According to the victim and the witnesses, the suspect was white, around 65 to 70 years old and 150 to 160 pounds. He had a salt-and-pepper receding hair line and was wearing a white shirt and a blue and gray jacket. The victim said he was driving a newer model Chevy work van, and he was able to provide a Georgia tag number. The tag number led back to a man living in Lawrenceville, but there were no arrests noted in the police report.