Utah clothing store forced to close for day after gun threat

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A clothing store in Salt Lake City was forced to close for a day after employees said a man refused to wear a mask then threatened to shoot everyone in the store.

"I asked him to put a mask on and immediately he just started to be really combative about the whole thing," Stockist employee Josh Edgar told KSTU-TV. "After a couple of minutes, I got him out of the store. Meanwhile he was still yelling at us and calling us names."

When the man was outside, he threatened to come back with a gun and shoot the place up, Edgar said.

"My mind just went to Atlanta and Denver and everywhere else that there has been a mass shooting as of late," Edgar said.

Employees called the police and owner Helen Wade closed the store for the day Sunday.

A statewide mask mandate had expired on Saturday, but Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall extended the city's mask mandate. Businesses around the state are still able to mandate masks as they wish.

The store reopened on Monday without further incident. Still, Wade said she is concerned this type of behavior might occur again at her store.

"I am definitely scared that we are going to see more of this," Wade said.