Man charged in reckless firearm incident

Members of the District 6 General Investigations Unit have charged a man after he allegedly threatened to shoot another man in front of his wife and child inside of a southwest grocery store.

On Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026, at approximately 12:10 p.m., a Calgary man was shopping with his family at a Safeway located at 2525 Woodview Drive S.W., when an unknown man approached the family, making political comments about Canadian and American tariffs.

The suspect became agitated and started shouting anti-Canadian and pro-American remarks and later threatened to retrieve a shotgun and shoot the other man.

After store staff intervened, the suspect approached the family a second time before being escorted out of the store.

Police identified the suspect based on witness reports and observed the suspect at a nearby residence in the 400 block of Woodside Road S.W., armed with a handgun. Officers heard a gunshot fired inside the residence, but no injures were reported and there were no additional occupants inside the residence.

At approximately 12:53 p.m., the suspect was arrested at the residence, and police executed a search warrant, seizing the following items:

• A .40-calibre pistol (unloaded)
• A loaded 12-guage shotgun
• A Glock replica BB gun
• Loaded magazines and ammunition

As a result, James Dean GARRIOCK, 49, is charged with:

• One count of uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm to a person
• One count of possession of an unlicensed weapon
• One count of discharge of a firearm with intent while being reckless
• Two counts of careless storage of a firearm

GARRIOCK will next appear in court on Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026.

“This was an extremely dangerous situation that could have turned out much worse than it did,” says Staff Sgt. Joe Hebert of the District 6 General Investigations Unit. “Situations like this can change quickly, and thanks to the witnesses, District 6 patrol members, the CPS Tactical Support Unit and other resources across the Service, we were able to quickly locate and safely apprehend the suspect before he further endangered the community.”

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact police by calling 403-266-1234. Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers through any of the following methods:

TALK: 1-800-222-8477
TYPE: www.calgarycrimestoppers.org
APP: P3 Tips

CA26402231/4252/5791