Man accused of robbing people at a Gulfport store using a machete

Gulfport Police have charged a man with robbing people at a store on Kelly Avenue by threatening them with a machete.

Police say 22-year-old Joshua Paxton Ward was arrested Friday and charged him with armed robbery. He was taken to Harrison County jail and bond was set at $500,000.

Officers were called to a business in the 1700 block of Kelly Avenue just before 1 p.m. Friday about an armed robbery. They said that the suspect, identified as Ward, had brandished a machete and demanded jewelry from the victim. Witnesses told police that Ward laughed and shouted obscenities before fleeing.

Ward was located and arrested shortly after the incident.