A Michigan town is in shock after 11 people were stabbed inside a Walmart in Traverse City. However, social media is now buzzing with praises for marine veteran who heroically confronted the culprit. Dramatic mobile phone footage shows the moment Derrick Perry, confronted the suspected knifeman in the store’s car park on Saturday evening. Perry, armed with a handgun, can be heard shouting, “Drop it! Throw the knife now. Throw it away!” as he stands his ground in front of the attacker. The suspect, identified by authorities as 42-year-old Bradford James Gille, is now facing multiple charges including terrorism and 11 counts of assault with intent to murder. According to Grand Traverse County Sheriff Michael Shea, the victims range in age from 29 to 85, with six aged over 60. All are expected to survive. The incident unfolded around 5 pm at the Walmart store, located about 255 miles northwest of Detroit. Witnesses say Gille began stabbing customers at random, triggering chaos throughout the aisles. Angela Helfrich, a local resident shopping with her fiancé at the time, told Click On Detroit, “It was just very panicky, very scary. I’ve never witnessed anything like that, and I’ve lived in Traverse City my whole life.”“I was way too close. That could have been me or my family, and I feel awful for all the victims and their families,” she further told the New York Post. Julia Martell, 32, was also inside the store when the attack began. “All I know is I saw a knife, and I ran away from the knife, and now I have no idea where the knife is,” she told NBC News. Martell said the realisation that she had been seconds away from being attacked is something she is still grappling with. “I could have easily been next.” Another shopper, Michael Miller, 34, ran toward the violence with his fiancee Julia Ling, 27, and their four children close by. The said that they heard “blood-curdling” screams upon entering into the shopping store.“He lunged at us,” Ling said, adding that she saw him stab two people before others forced him out of the store. Miller was part of the group that wrestled Gille to the ground and called 911.Ling helped save young girls by pulling them behind a bread rack. “Anything to block him from them,” she said. “I think we all saw each other. We all noticed each other and saw what was going on,” Miller said.“Definitely something that I think everybody was kind of in on together.” Miller later helped first responders locate the injured victims. Speaking afterwards, he said, “I only did what anybody should have done.” Ling added, “It should be that way.” Officials have confirmed that Gille acted alone and had a history of arrests for drug offences and vandalism. Authorities have described the attack as random, with no specific targets. Munson Medical Center, where all 11 victims were taken, confirmed that as of Sunday evening, eight were in fair condition and two remained in serious condition. Meanwhile, tributes have poured in for Derrick Perry, the Marine veteran who helped stop the attacker. Online, many are calling for him to be formally recognised. “Give this man the recognition his actions deserve,” one commenter wrote. “Good men who are armed save lives.” Perry’s daughter described it as a “proud daughter moment,” while his daughter-in-law called him a “true hero.” Former US Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, who lives in Traverse City, posted on social media that she and her husband Chasten were shaken by the awful and senseless violence that occurred in the community.
