A man driving a van with Pennsylvania license plates was arrested after fleeing an alleged attack at Walmart at Buffalo Ridge Plaza in The Villages.
The altercation occurred at about 2 p.m. Saturday when 35-year-old Michael Joseph Perkowski struck a Walmart loss prevention officer who had followed Perkowski to the parking lot after suspecting him of a theft, according to an arrest report from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. Perkowski got into a gray van and drove away, after the altercation. The incident was captured on Walmart’s video surveillance.
A deputy found Perkowski when his vehicle was stopped at the railroad crossing at County Road 466 and County Road 105. A deputy confirmed Perkowski’s identity by his Pennsylvania driver’s license.
The New York native was arrested on a charge of battery. He was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting $1,000 bond.
