Shots rang out in the parking lot of the Walmart Supercenter on Grindstone Parkway in south Columbia Sunday night, sending police swarming the scene, shoppers scrambling out a side exit, and crime-scene tape stretching across the lot for more than three hours.
Columbia Police confirmed that shots were fired at the store Sunday night, according to abc17news.com. Officers began blocking off the parking lot with crime-scene tape shortly after 7 p.m., and people inside the store were evacuated through a side door into the parking lot around 7:13 p.m., the outlet reported. A KOMU 8 crew on scene saw police tape wrapped around the Walmart parking lot, according to KOMU 8, which reported that the Columbia Police Department is investigating a shots-fired incident at the Walmart Supercenter on Grindstone Parkway.
A Heavy Response Fills the Parking Lot
The response was substantial. A crime-scene investigation van arrived at the Walmart at 7:05 p.m., and the scene eventually drew eight Columbia Police cars and two University of Missouri ambulances, per the same abc17news.com account. Police presence was seen at the store around 7 p.m., with the investigation stretching well into the night.
Columbia Police asked the public to avoid the area around the Walmart, a request KOMU 8 reported was made via social media post. Krcgtv.com separately reported that Columbia police were investigating a shots-fired incident in the 1200 block of Grindstone Parkway Walmart parking lot, and that a Walmart employee said the store might not reopen for the rest of the night as the investigation continued, according to krcgtv.com.
Scene Clears After Hours of Waiting
Shoppers whose cars sat inside the taped-off zone had to wait out the investigation. Around 9:35 p.m., officers began escorting people to their vehicles so they could leave the taped-off areas, the report from abc17news.com noted. Crime-scene tape finally started coming down at 10:25 p.m., more than three hours after officers first sealed off the lot.
Not the First Trouble at This Walmart
This is not the first time the Grindstone Parkway Walmart has drawn a heavy police response. In September 2025, a road-rage incident near the same store led to shots being fired, with one vehicle struck by a bullet though no one was hurt, according to the earlier abc17news.com report. Officers at that scene found evidence of shots fired and property damage, and 77-year-old Arnold R. Phillips was arrested on suspicion of first-degree assault, unlawful gun use and armed criminal action.
