Woman Who Allegedly Pepper Sprayed Shoppers Surrenders
The woman unleashed pepper spray on a crowd at an L.A. Walmart.
Nov. 26, 2011 — -- A Black Friday shopper who allegedly pepper-sprayed competing shoppers at a Los Angeles Walmart has surrendered to police.
The woman, who has not been identified, surrendered to cops around 8:30 p.m. Friday, officials said today. She was released pending further investigation.
The woman became notorious during the frenzy of Black Friday shopping when she allegedly used pepper spray on 10-20 people in different areas of a Walmart store Thursday night to gain quick access to the deals on her list.
"There are a lot of victims and witnesses that need to be interviewed to determine what the appropriate actions are," Officer Bruce Borihanh told ABC News.
The store had brought out a crate of discounted Xbox video game players, and a crowd had formed to wait for the crate to be opened. The woman began pepper spraying shoppers in order to get closer to the crate, according to Police Sgt. Jose Valle.
Shopper John Lopez wasn't hit, but compared the scene to a riot.
"[The victims'] faces were red," he told ABC News Radio. "This one guy was coming up to my wife going, 'Call an ambulance! Call an ambulance!'"
During the melee, the woman was able to pay for her purchases and slip away before police arrived, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The pepper spray incident was not the only violence that broke out during Black Friday sales.
Black Friday Violence Breaks Out at Walmarts Across the Country
Police said a man was shot in the parking lot of a San Leandro, Calif., Walmart around 1:50 a.m. Friday morning, after he refused to give up his purchases to a group of thieves. The victim, whom police refused to identify, was shopping with his family, who managed to hold down one suspect until police arrived. The others fled, but Sgt. Mike Sobek of the San Leandro Police Department said the police were still reviewing surveillance footage for clues.
In Kissimmee, Fla., two men fought over jewelry deals at a Walmart. Police arrived at the store shortly after 1 a.m. to defuse the fight. One man was arrested when he resisted as officers tried to escort him out of the store.
In another Walmart-centric act of rage, Tonia Robbins, 55, was shot in the foot while thieves stole her purse outside a Myrtle Beach, S.C., store shortly after 1 a.m. The suspects fled after Ann Robbins, 58, pulled out a revolver and fired three warning shots into the air, the police report stated.
ABC News' Alyssa Newcomb contributed to this report.