PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The former Gresham High school student who walked into a Missouri Walmart with several guns and body armor days after the El Paso and Dayton shootings shared his side of the story on Wednesday.
Dmitriy N. Andreychenko, 20, faces a second-degree charge for making a terrorist threat at the Walmart Neighborhood Market in Springfield, Missouri.
He told CNN what he did was a mistake — but not one he regrets.
Dressed in fatigues and armed up with a tactical rifle, a pistol and 100 rounds of ammo, he walked into the Walmart neighborhood market to take advantage of his second amendment right and Missouri law to carry a gun openly.
He told CNN he was right about people’s reactions, at first they didn’t seem alarmed — but then the fire alarm was pulled.
“No one looked like they were scared no one looked frightened,” said Andreychenko. “There was no one screaming, no one was getting trampled. It just looked like a very civil evacuation of the building.”
He said at first he didn’t realize the mass exodus was because of him — until he found himself held at gunpoint by a well-trained military veteran and concealed carry permit holder.
Andreychenko said he even talked to a Walmart manager on his way there to make sure it was okay for him to do so.
Andreuchenko’s arrest occurred days after mass shootings at an El Paso, Texas, Walmart and in a historic district in Dayton, Ohio, which caused the deaths of more than 30 people. Andreychenko said he wanted to see whether the store would respect his Second Amendment rights, according to the probable cause statement.
He said the shootings in El Paso and Dayton that were fresh in most people’s minds never entered his own.
Missouri does not require a permit to openly or conceal carry firearms for anyone 19 and older. However, Andreychenko could receive up to four years in prison and/or a fine of up to $10,000 for the charge he’s facing.
Andreychenko said although he doesn’t regret what he did — he does regret the timing.
