Retail theft report leads to charges against Atoka man

An Atoka man is facing multiple misdemeanor charges following an incident at the local Walmart that led to a police encounter on the evening of April 20.

According to the report, Atoka Police were contacted by Walmart asset protection at approximately 7:17 p.m. regarding a male who had just left the store. An officer located the individual, identified as Brian Massey, riding a bicycle near the intersection of US 69 and 13th Street.

At the time of the initial contact, Massey reportedly told the officer he had been in the store but had not stolen anything, claiming he had decided not to purchase a pack of batteries because they were too expensive.