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Walmart stand-off update: Man, 31, charged after Richmond incident

A 31-year-old man has been charged after Tuesday's incident inside Richmond`s Walmart, which prompted a massive police response. After a 90-minute stand-off, John Bennett Lam surrendered to police and was taken into custody around 5:30 p.m.
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A screenshot from a video posted by Marion Laramie shows RCMP surrounding the meat and seafood sections of Walmart on Tuesday after a man was spotted wielding what appeared to be butcher knives. Video screenshot

A 31-year-old man has been charged after Tuesday's incident inside Richmond`s Walmart, which prompted a massive police response.

After a 90-minute stand-off, John Bennett Lam surrendered to police and was taken into custody around 5:30 p.m. No injuries were reported.

And on Wednesday, three charges were approved against Lam, of Richmond, who is known to police.

He has been charged with threatening with, and possession of, a weapon and causing a disturbance.

A call was received by the Richmond RCMP shortly before 4 p.m. to the Richmond Wal-Mart involving a distraught man who was apparently armed.

On a video posted on Twitter, the suspect was observed brandishing “two meat cleavers” while moving towards the police.

Cpl. Dennis Hwang, of the Richmond RCMP, said that the situation was “unique and highly dangerous” but was fortunate to have a crisis negotiator on scene to communicate with a “distraught” Lam.

Many customers were still inside the store as the incident played out, with several shooting video.

However, Hwang said that police “strongly urge the public to leave dangerous areas immediately when directed,” adding that they should not stay in a dangerous area out of “sheer curiosity, or for (the) sake of capturing a video.”