Elderly man in search of dog food gets locked in Walmart for hours

FORT MILL, SC (FOX 46 WJZY) - A 79-year-old man says he ended up getting stuck inside a Fort Mill Walmart overnight for several hours. Larry Todd says it's one of the craziest stories of his life, and it all revolves around dog food.

Todd went to his Walmart Neighborhood Market off Doby Bridge Road on July 20 about 30 minutes before closing. While searching for dog food in the back corner of the store, he lost track of time.

It wasn't until he walked to the front of the store that Todd realized he was alone.

"The place was shut down completely. I said to myself, 'Oh, I'm locked in,'" Todd told FOX 46.

Todd thought someone from Walmart would've checked to make sure the store was empty before closing. "That didn't happen," he said.

The 79-year-old says there was no closing announcement over the intercom.

At one point Todd thought he'd be trapped in the store all night. Thankfully, two hours later an alarm at the front of the store was triggered. But at first it wasn't the salvation Todd was hoping for.

"I was interrogated by the police department. They searched me and put handcuffs on me," he said.

Fort Mill police arrived and, from the outside, didn't know if Todd was locked in or if he had broken in. Eventually police escorted the 79-year-old home.

"I guess I didn't look like a criminal, I hope I didn't," he said.

The next day Todd returned to the store he had spent so many hours in to finally pick up food for his dog, Lulu. Now he's got the food and an interesting story to tell as well.

FOX 46 reached out to Walmart to find out if the correct closing procedures were followed. As previously mentioned, Todd says no announcements were made over the loud speaker and no one approached him in the aisle to alert him that the store was closing.

So far, Walmart has not responded.