GULPORT — A gulf coast man accused of stealing a John Deere front-end loader, then using it to ram vehicles in a Wal-Mart parking lot, told police “he thought it was the end of the world and zombies were chasing him,” a court appearance revealed.

The Biloxi Sun-Herald reports Shaun Michale Stroud,32, waived a preliminary hearing in justice court and remains in Harrison County jail on a $550,000 bond.

Stroud is accused of stealing a front-end loader on April 8 and driving it to Walmart where he reportedly hit two occupied vehicles, several utility trailers and three unoccupied vehicles.

Police say they had to put down spike strips to stop Stroud in a nearby Nissan dealership parking lot after he fled in the front-end loader.

At the police station, Stroud told the officers about the zombies, court records say.

County prosecutor Herman Cox said police secured a search warrant to draw blood from Stroud to determine whether he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.