EDINBURGH, Ind. -- A knife-wielding man was arrested earlier this week in what police called a meat massacre at a south-central Indiana supermarket.

Several people called 911 on Wednesday morning to report a man with a knife in the Jay C Food Store.

“We have a gentleman here cutting into the meat and throwing it onto the floor,” one caller said.

"Got a man with a knife who's doing things,” another caller said.

When officers arrived, they found meat scattered everywhere in what Edinburgh police called one of the most bizarre cases they had ever investigated.

Police said Anthony Coffman, 28, used a hunting knife to cut through meat packages, throwing open containers of raw beef on the floor. He then poured dog food over some of the meat in hopes of contaminating it so it couldn’t be sold, said Edinburgh police Deputy Chief David Lutz.

A store employee tried to stop Coffman, but gave up when he threatened the employee with the knife, police said.

Coffman told police that he is a vegetarian and gets upset when others consume beef, telling the employee that God sent him to ruin the meat and that he was trying to save little girls from food he believes would make them “chubby.”

"He thought if he could save one chubby girl, he's done his job," Lutz said.

Police think an argument earlier in the day prompted the incident.

“He’d got into it with his grandmother. She was preparing a pot roast … and he was upset over that,” Lutz said. “Him and her had a few words, and then a couple hours later, he’s down there at the Jay C Food Store doing this.”

Employees tackled Coffman outside the store and held him until police arrived.

Coffman was taken to a hospital for a mental evaluation. He faces charges of criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, criminal mischief and disorderly conduct.

Police said more than $200 worth of meat was destroyed.