WICHITA FALLS (KFDX/KJTL) — Wichita Falls police responded to a disturbance at the Murphy’s USA gas station on Highway 79 early this morning and were confronted with a man wielding a large wooden cross, who is arrested after being tased three times.

The first officer to arrive says he saw a white male in a red and black t-shirt carrying a large wooden cross with a metal pipe attached to its back near the last row of gas pumps.

He turned on his overhead emergency lights and got out to investigate, and said the man, identified later as 28-year-old Brandon Hardy, ignored his multiple instructions to stop walking.

As the officer approached within eight feet of Hardy, he said Hardy turned his body sideways toward him and raised the wooden cross over his shoulder, and appeared ready to hit the officer with it.

The officer said he was in fear of being hit with the cross, so he got out his Taser and tased Hardy.

He said Hardy dropped the cross and began running north. The officer says he changed cartridges of his Taser and chased after him. He said as he neared Hardy, Hardy turned toward him and the officer fired his Taser into Hardy again and he fell down, broke off the Taser prongs, and got up and began running away again.

The officer tackled him and when Hardy began resisting, he stunned him again with the Taser but said Hardy was able to get free and take off running again.

By this time numerous other officers arrived and began chasing Hardy, and after another brief struggle, were able to get him in cuffs in the field between Taco Bell and Walmart.

Court records show Hardy has one other pending case of making terroristic threats and one case of theft of a vehicle.