A horrific stabbing at a Michigan Walmart left 11 people injured, including six in critical condition, but several brave citizens intervened when the knife-wielding perpetrator tried to flee the scene, holding him at gunpoint until the police arrived and took him into custody.
For background, on July 26, 2025, Bradford James Gille, a 42-year-old, went on a stabbing spree in a Traverse City, Michigan, Walmart, injuring nearly a dozen people, all of whom had to be hospitalized. After the stabber tried to run from the scene, he was apprehended by a group of heroic bystanders. One man held Gille at gunpoint, forcing him to drop his knife.
In a video captured outside the Walmart, Gille can be seen attempting to walk away from a group of customers, who cornered him and held him at gunpoint. One man, wielding a handgun, yelled at Gille to “drop it,” referring to his knife, adding again, “Drop it right f—ing now!” Gille initially refused to comply, but finally tossed his knife away. Moments later, Traverse City Police officers arrived and arrested Gille.
After the incident, Grand Traverse County Sheriff Michael Shea praised the brave Walmart customers for acting fast, along with the officers who apprehended Gille. The Sheriff told reporters, “I cannot commend everyone that was involved enough. When you stop and look from the time of call to the time of actual custody, the individual was detained within one minute.”
Continuing, Sheriff Shea said the response from the bystanders was “remarkable,” adding, “When you look at it in that minute, Lord knows how many additional victims.” Additionally, the sheriff clarified that a clear motive for Gille’s actions has not been determined, but confirmed that he had “prior assaultive incidents as well as controlled substance violations.”
In addition, Grand Traverse County Prosecutor Noelle Moeggenberg told the press that Gille would be facing terrorism charges, explaining “It’s something that is done not to individual people, not to those individual victims — obviously they are most affected — but it is we believe in some and some ways done to affect the entire community, to put fear in the entire community and to change how maybe we operate on a daily basis.”
Moreover, Walmart issued a statement to the press condemning Gille’s actions, saying via a spokesperson, “Violence like this is unacceptable. Our thoughts are with those who were injured and we’re thankful for the swift action of first responders. We’ll continue working closely with law enforcement during their investigation.”
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Thankfully, Munson Healthcare announced via social media that victims of the stabbing were showing “encouraging signs of recovery,” with spokesperson Megan Brown explaining that four of the victims remain in serious condition, with seven in fair condition. As for Gille, he is reportedly facing one count of terrorism and 11 counts of assault with intent to murder.
Watch the brave bystanders apprehend Gille:
Featured image credit: video screengrab