An Athens resident was arrested at Kroger late Thursday night after allegedly making false claims of being an undercover police officer and having a machete.
Several witnesses state that Andrew Hutchins, 19, walked in to the East State Street grocer at about 10 p.m. and demanded that customers get on the floor because he would be robbing the store, according to an Athens Police Department news release.
He reached in to his large leather coat as if to pull out a weapon and then said that he was kidding, said APD Lt. Randy Gray.
Hutchins then claimed he was an undercover police officer and, when approached by the manager, said that he had a machete, according to the release.
A friend who accompanied Hutchins in to the store immediately told customers that he was not serious, Gray said.
No one was injured during the brief time that the crime occurred, and Hutchins' intentions are still unclear, he said.
I don't know if he was kidding
or actually trying to rob the place and his friend stopped him from being an idiot Gray said.
Hutchins was charged with inducing panic and impersonating a police officer, according to the release.
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