Police Seek Man Who Punched Victim From Behind in Glen Burnie Walmart Parking Lot

Anne Arundel County police are hunting an unidentified man who walked up behind a shopper in the parking lot of the Walmart on Ritchie Highway in Glen Burnie and punched him in the face without apparent provocation, and investigators are asking the public to help put a name to a released photo of a person of interest.

Officers responded to the store at the 8100 block of Ritchie Highway shortly after 7:20 p.m. on Monday, March 9, after a call reporting an assault. When they arrived, they spoke with the adult male victim, who told them an unknown man had come up from behind him in the lot and struck him in the face. Authorities have not released any details about the extent of the victim's injuries.

Eastern District detectives took over the investigation and subsequently released an image of a person of interest. No arrest has been reported in the case.

The attack is the latest violent incident tied to that particular parking lot. The same Ritchie Highway Walmart lot was the scene of separate stabbings that led to arrests, according to prior WMAR2 reporting. In a separate, unrelated incident, James Alan Hostetter, 44, was arrested and charged with first-degree assault after a road-rage confrontation in the same lot in which he allegedly pulled a knife and lunged at two people who approached him after spotting him tampering with their tires. Walmart security intervened before police arrived and Hostetter fled in his car; officers later located him at a Pasadena address and found a knife in the vehicle.

Detectives are asking anyone who was at the Glen Burnie Walmart the evening of March 9 or who has video footage from the lot to contact Eastern District investigators at 410-222-3502. Those who want to remain anonymous can call the Anne Arundel County Police tip line at 410-222-4700. Police advise against confronting the person pictured in the released image; anyone who spots the individual and believes there is an immediate danger should call 911 and preserve any potential evidence to hand over to investigators.