Birkdale Village ‘disturbance’ involved armed customer making threats, police say

An armed customer was arrested Saturday at Birkdale Village shopping center, after witnesses reported he pointed a gun at someone and made threats, according to Huntersville police.

The “disturbance between patrons” happened around 7:30 p.m. at 8711 Lindholm Drive, which is North Italia restaurant, maps show.

“An investigation revealed that a suspect had threatened and pointed a firearm at another person during an argument,” police said in an April 12 Facebook post.

“Huntersville police officers who were working off-duty at Birkdale Village were able to respond to the incident quickly. Based on their investigation, there was no evidence that shots were fired. A loaded weapon was recovered at the scene, but all rounds were accounted for.”

James Servillion Harrison III, 38, of Salisbury, was arrested and charged with assault by pointing a gun and communicating threats, police said. Both charges are misdemeanors, according to Mecklenburg County jail records.

Court documents report the weapon involved was a 9 mm Springfield pistol, and Harrison threatened “that he would shoot the victim.”

Witnesses noted panic set in when patrons saw the incident playing out.

“My daughter and I were inside North Italia when this happened. We quickly went into the kitchen with the staff as prom kids scattered leaving high heels behind,” one woman wrote on the police department’s Facebook page. “Everyone was visibly shaken, it happened so quickly but the police response was very quick. The staff at North Italia were amazing!! They comforted my daughter, each other as well as other people in the aftermath.”

Harrison was released by the Mecklenburg County jail early Sunday on a $15,000 bond, records show.

Details of what started the dispute were not released.

Huntersville is about a 15-mile drive north from uptown Charlotte.

This story was originally published April 12, 2026 at 9:45 AM with the headline "Birkdale Village ‘disturbance’ involved armed customer making threats, police say."