San Jose police officers, guns drawn, entered an AMC movie theater Saturday night to investigate a report of a man carrying a firearm, startling patrons and halting a screening.
The incident occurred around 8 p.m. on Oct. 3 at the AMC Saratoga 14 in West San Jose. Police responded to calls reporting a man with a gun inside the theater. Upon arrival, officers entered theater No. 13, interrupting the movie and turning on the house lights.
Video footage captured by a moviegoer shows officers pointing weapons, one with a tactical light, toward the audience. An officer can be heard on the video instructing patrons to raise their hands and stand up. "Sorry to interrupt. Put your hands up real quick, both hands. Stand up," the officer said.
Officers described the suspect as having long red hair and wearing a black T-shirt and shorts. The officer continued, "Sorry for the inconvenience. Walk towards us over here. Keep your hands up."
Patrons expressed confusion and shock at the sudden police presence. "It was scary to see a gun that big right in front of me," said Lauren, who was inside the theater. "There were six cops. One of them was pointing a huge gun at the back of the room and they told the guy in the back right to stand up and put his hands above his head."
Another moviegoer, Aditya Gupta, described being stunned by the officers' entry. "The girl who was sitting on my right, she ducked, and I realized after the fact that I should’ve done the same. I don’t think it registered to me that there was a real officer with a real assault rifle-looking thing," he told NBC Bay Area.
Both Lauren and Gupta stated they left the theater, fearing a potential shootout.
Authorities located an individual matching the suspect's description inside the theater. However, a search of the suspect and the immediate area yielded no firearm, according to KRON 4.