Homestead police arrested a 29-year-old Miami Gardens man Monday morning after he allegedly made threats inside a Publix grocery store and was found with a loaded firearm and bags of suspected marijuana. Ashton Cawley was taken into custody at the Homestead Town Square Shopping Center at 891 N. Homestead Blvd. just before 10 a.m. The incident prompted a swift police response after reports of threatening behavior toward store patrons.
“We had an altercation where somebody threatened to shoot one of the patrons here at the store,” said Homestead Police Chief Mario Knapp. Officers discovered Cawley hiding in a bathroom stall when the first responding officer arrived at the scene. Body-worn camera footage captured the arrest, showing the officer ordering Cawley to the ground before additional officers arrived to escort him from the store in handcuffs.
Police recovered a loaded 9mm handgun equipped with both a regular magazine and an extended magazine from Cawley’s possession. Officers also found bags of suspected marijuana and a digital scale inside a backpack that Cawley had left in the bathroom stall. Body camera footage documented the recovery of these items during the investigation.
“It could have been a lot worse,” said Chief Knapp. “We don’t know the guy’s intention. He’s got a criminal past. It doesn’t seem normal for someone to be walking around with a backpack with that amount of drugs.” The police chief’s comments highlighted concerns about the potential severity of the situation given the combination of weapons and narcotics found in Cawley’s possession.
Cawley faces a charge of armed cannabis possession with intent to sell, reflecting the serious nature of the allegations against him. The charge combines both the weapons violation and the suspected drug trafficking activity that police believe they uncovered during the arrest. His criminal history, as referenced by Chief Knapp, adds another layer of concern to the case.
Cawley appeared before a judge Tuesday, where he was granted a $1,000 bond despite the serious nature of the charges. However, as of Tuesday afternoon, he remained incarcerated at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. The relatively low bond amount may reflect various factors considered by the court during the hearing.