7-Year-Old Causes Gun Scare with Toy; Police Swarm New Mexico Chili’s

Police showed up, weapons drawn, after getting a call about someone waving a gun around in

the parking lot. What the caller failed to mention to police is that the gun was a toy and the 

person “waving it around” was 7-year-old Wyatt Hooten.gunman. They found the gun was 

fake and the suspect was a second-grader.

“The 7-year-old was out there playing with his gun, you know just running around with his little 

toy gun, with an orange tip,” said Marcie Clancy, Wyatt’s great-grandmother.

Wyatt’s family went out to eat for his mom’s birthday. After dinner, their truck wouldn’t start; 

Wyatt started playing with his toy gun while they waited for a ride.

Police later came storming in, looking for a gunman.

“And then we noticed they had their guns drawn and I was like okay, so we pulled up and then

more came running through with their guns drawn,” said Clancy.

The boy had already put the toy gun away, so Wyatt’s mom asked police what was going on. 

Police told her they had a report that someone was brandishing a gun. Wyatt’s mom told the 

officer her son was playing with a fake one.

Police ended up giving Wyatt a lecture about playing with toy guns in public. Wyatt, who’s 

always wanted to be a policeman, listened but the whole ordeal left him rattled.

“And he’s always wanted to be one and he says I don’t think I wanna be a cop now, you know 

cause they pull guns on people,” said Clancy.

Police say they responded to the incident appropriately because all they knew was that a 

gunman was spotted in the parking lot.

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