Walmart CEO: Chesapeake store to remain closed ‘for the foreseeable future’

Trevor Metcalfe, The Virginian-Pilot
·1 min read
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The Chesapeake Walmart where police said a manager shot six people to death will remain closed for “the foreseeable future,” according to a company executive.

Walmart U.S. President and CEO John Furner said in an online message to U.S. employees that the company will work with Chesapeake store workers when determining how best to remodel and reopen the store to help them move forward.

“We understand this was a moment that can never be forgotten, particularly for the surviving associates of Store #1841,” Furner said in the message.

The company will also continue to pay Chesapeake employees regardless of their schedules while the store is closed, Furner said. Walmart also plans to pay for funeral, travel and other expenses for the families of those killed.

Walmart plans to donate $1 million to the United Way of South Hampton Roads’ Hope & Healing Fund, which will support the community through mental health services and violence prevention. The company will also match all employee donations to the fund 2-to-1 through its Season of Giving Back campaign.

Police said six employees were shot to death when 31-year-old Andre Bing, an overnight manager for Walmart, entered the employee break room on Nov. 22 and began shooting before killing himself.

Trevor Metcalfe, 757-222-5345, trevor.metcalfe@pilotonline.com