Bradford James Gille is the Traverse City, Michigan, Walmart mass stabbing suspect.
That's according to Grand Traverse County, MI, Sheriff Mike Shea.
In a July 27 news conference, the sheriff said that the first 911 callers told authorities that Gille, 42, of Afton, MI, was "actively stabbing people" at the Traverse City Walmart. He said that one count of terrorism will be included in the charges referred against Gille. However, the motive is not yet clear, the sheriff said, adding that Gille is a Michigan resident.
Gille has a criminal history, the sheriff said. It includes "prior assaultive incidents" and past drug violations. He was inside the store for 35 minutes before the attack occurred, Shea added.
Gille entered Walmart at 4:10 p.m. on July 26 and stabbed 11 people, Shea said. He previously characterized the mass stabbings as "random."
When the first deputy arrived, multiple citizens, including one armed with a pistol, were confronting the male suspect in the parking lot, preventing him from harming more people, Shea said.
A viral video has emerged showing the bystanders surrounding the suspect in the parking lot.
Related: Viral Walmart Video Shows Gun-Wielding Bystander Stopping Stabbing Suspect
The weapon used by the suspect was a folding knife with a 3.5-inch cutting blade, said Shea.
Aid was "immediately provided to the victims by responding law enforcement, citizens, and other emergency responders," he said.
One Walmart employee was among the injured.
The victims are a male, 70; female, 84; male, 82; female, 29; female, 80; female, 67; male, 38; male, 39; female, 65; male, 40; and male, 55, the sheriff said.
One of the heroic bystanders was identified on social media by two relatives as Derrick Perry.
A woman who runs a local scanner page wrote on Facebook that two of the bystanders who helped stop Gille are former Marines. "The assailant was beginning to flee after his rampage, but was met in the parking lot by several brave citizens," wrote Lisa Judi Sherm.
Matt Kolakowski, one of the former Marines who stopped Gille, spoke to CNN.
“I thought to myself, ‘Well, I don’t got no weapon, so what am I going to do?’ So, I just grabbed an empty grocery cart and just took off after him as hard as I could,” Kolakowski said to CNN.
According to CNN, Kolakowski said he "rammed the attacker in the ankle with a shopping cart. He lifted the cart over his head and attempted to slam it down onto the attacker."
Referring to the bystander identified as Perry, Kolakowski told CNN, “The other Marine told me that he just went shooting at a range, and he forgot to take his pistol off his hip. That’s what it all came down to.”
According to the New York Post, Gille "has multiple past arrests for criminal mischief and drug offenses and previously served 49 days in jail in Florida in 2014 for vandalism."
The Post noted that "two possible self-published books by Gille and available on Amazon reveal the author as a born-again Christian."
The author "turned to prayer at age 14 in 1997 after the 'unfortunate loss of one of my close friends,' the blurb on one of the books reads," the Post reported.
Six patients were initially in critical condition, hospital officials said in the news conference. Two remain in serious condition, and the rest are in fair condition, with one victim already released.
Related: Viral Walmart Video Shows Gun-Wielding Bystander Stopping Stabbing Suspect
Bradford James Gille Is the Traverse City, Michigan, Walmart Stabbing Suspect first appeared on Men's Journal on Jul 27, 2025
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