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PD: Armed man threatens employees at Mesa car dealership

Armed man threatens Mesa dealership employees
Posted at 11:32 AM, Jan 04, 2018
and last updated 2018-01-04 21:29:52-05

An armed Mesa man upset with a car dealership is accused of kidnapping and threatening employees. 

Mesa police report that on December 23 they were called to a car dealership near Country Club Drive and Main Street for an armed man who was threatening employees. 

Victims tell police that 48-year-old Robert Payne Gourley came to the dealership to resolve an issue with a vehicle that he recently purchased.  

Gourley allegedly pulled out a handgun and told the employees that they couldn't leave "until the situation was resolved." 

He then walked to the office area of the dealership, placed a magazine in the gun and threatened a female worker. The woman told Gourley, "she was a cancer survivor, who did not want to be shot to death."  

At that point, police say Gourley’ s wife came into the office and took the gun from him. 

He was arrested outside in the parking lot a few moments later. 

Upon his arrest, he allegedly admitted to police that he wanted to scare the employees, telling police that, "He did not want them going back to their happy homes, given all that was happening to him." 

Gourley was indicted by a grand jury on multiple counts of aggravated assault and kidnapping.  

For more on this story watch Cameron Polom's live report tonight at 6 on ABC15.