A shopping center in New Jersey was locked down Tuesday night as police tried to calm down an agitated man in a parking lot.
The 39-year-old man, who authorities described as emotionally disturbed, was located by a Toms River police officer around 8:30 p.m. after Seaside Heights police put out an alert about him.
The officer pulled the man over in a Shoprite parking lot off Route 37, but the man refused to get out of his car, authorities said.
The man was highly agitated and police believed he may be a threat to himself or others. Businesses in the shopping center were asked to keep everyone inside.
People took to social media with unconfirmed reports of officers drawing their weapons after the man threatened to shoot himself and others.
Officers communicated with the man for more than an hour. They were eventually able to talk him down and he was taken into custody just after 9:45 p.m.
He is being evaluated at an area hospital. It's unclear if he faces any charges.
No one was injured.
