LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Security cameras from a Louisville business captured the moments a man wanted by police ran through a busy shopping center on his way to a south end Walmart, where police say he later tried to carjack a woman and held her at gunpoint.
The victim was sitting in the pharmacy drive-thru lane when authorities say the suspect jumped into her van. LMPD says after multiple verbal commands, officers were forced to shoot the suspect through the windshield of the car.
"Look at how many people were in danger that day," said the manager of the Peddlers Mall at Outer Loop and New Cut Road who didn't want to be identified. "He could have very easily grabbed somebody walking through the parking lot. Thank God he didn't come in here."
The suspect, identified by LMPD as 37-year-old Randall Allen, is seen on surveillance video running past the Peddlers Mall front doors as he rushed toward the Walmart.
The store's manager told WHAS11 the suspect first tried to get into two cars in their parking lot before running off. He's seen taking off his shirt and holding a gun in one hand.
"He's got a gun in his hand, see it?" the store manager said as she walked us through the footage. "You can see the gun in his waistband, too."
Court documents show this isn't Allen's first run-in with police. He'd been arrested back in June for having a gun as a convicted felon, but he quickly posted his $1,000 bond to get out of jail.
Allen was actually due back in court for his June case on Aug. 29, but the Walmart incident happened the day before.
Court records also detail an incident from 2017 down in Barren County, where Allen was accused of shooting at people in a car while on the road. He also pleaded guilty to wanton endangerment charges in a separate case from 2018.
Both Mayor Craig Greenberg and LMPD have been vocal in calling for Louisville's judges to ensure they're keeping violent offenders off the streets.
"When somebody commits a violent crime with a gun, they need to be held significantly accountable -- one, for their actions, and two, to deter other [crimes] from happening," Greenberg told WHAS11 at a public appearance on Monday.
Police say Allen remains in the hospital. He's charged with resisting arrest, unlawful imprisonment and wanton endangerment, among other charges.
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