Man charged with felonies in grocery store incident

Published 1:06 pm Saturday, November 18, 2017

A man who allegedly held a pair of scissors to the throat of a 17-year-old grocery store cashier appeared on Friday in Mower County District Court.

Jeremy Reid Johnson, 49

Jeremy Reid Johnson, 49, of Austin, was charged with felony second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, felony terroristic threats and felony false imprisonment.

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According to Austin Police Chief Brian Krueger, police and Sheriff’s deputies responded to multiple calls at 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday at Jim’s Marketplace, 301 11th St. NE. Witnesses reported that Johnson came up behind the cashier and held an edged weapon to her throat and chest area.

Law enforcement agents established a perimeter and ordered Johnson to let her go. The cashier was eventually able to get away from Johnson and ran to the back of the store. Officer then arrested Johnson and retrieved the scissors he held to the cashier’s throat.

Johnson allegedly told officers he had ingested plant food, a type of synthetic drug.

Johnson will appear in court again on Nov. 27.