Police have identified a man suspected of starting a fire inside a Walmart in Broomfield on Monday and threatening shoppers, including holding a knife to the throat of a 6-year-old boy.
Samuel Maldonado-Tapia, 28, of Broomfield is being held at the Broomfield Detention Center on charges including first-degree kidnapping, attempted second-degree kidnapping, menacing and first-degree arson.
Police said in a news release that Maldonado-Tapia set a pile of clothing on fire at a Walmart on West 121st Avenue.
Maldonado-Tapia allegedly held a knife to the throat of a 6-year-old boy who was sitting in a shopping cart when police arrived. Police said the boy’s 43-year-old mother had attempted to call 911 when she saw the fire when the suspect approached her with a knife and tried to grab her. When she fell to the floor, the man turned his attention to the boy. Police arrived and ordered the suspect at gunpoint to drop the knife. He did so and was tackled by police. Police said there was no relationship between Maldonado-Tapia and the woman or her son.
