Advertisement Lion King's Pumbaa testifies in Omaha weapons trial Actor on stand: 'Barrel of the gun pointed straight at me.' Share Shares Copy Link Copy

He came to Omaha to entertain families; he left Omaha the victim of a crime; he returned to put the man charged behind bars.In March 2013, Ben Lipitz was in town on business. His job? Play Pumbaa -- the popular warthog character in Disney's "The Lion King." It was a traveling Broadway show, billed as "Omaha's most eagerly awaited stage production ever.""Everybody loves when we sing 'Hakuna Matata,'" Lipitz said of the song that translates to 'no worries.' The jury laughed.As testimony continued, prosecutors laid out what happened on the Tuesday marking the show's second week in the city. Lipitz, a Pennsylvania native, headed to Home Depot at 72nd and Ames before his call at the Orpheum Theater. He wanted matching containers to collect money from theater-goers for a charity drive."I just wanted all the buckets to match," Lipitz said.It was supposed to be a 15 minute trip, until the married father of two met Jim Gilot.He could hardly say "Hakuna Matata" about the encounter.Lipitz testified Gilot approached him three times in the parking, right after pulling up. The 29-year-old told the actor over and over to stop following him; that he was an undercover cop; that he had to leave.Gilot brandished a badge."He said he was with the Omaha Police Department," Lipitz testified. "And I told him, 'But it says FBI on that badge."He was with them too, Gilot told Lipitz.According to Lipitz and prosecutors, Gilot wasn't a cop. But he was armed like one.During the third encounter, Gilot pulled a handgun on the actor telling the 49-year-old: "You're advancing on me. I'm standing my ground."Lipitz froze. He put his hands in the air. And he backed behind his SUV, using his Mercedes-Benz ML 350 like a shield."The barrel of the gun was pointed straight at me," Lipitz said.He testified Gilot aimed the gun at him for about two or three minutes. Gilot's defense attorneys later got the actor to admit it was less than 30 seconds.Of the time he spent staring at the barrel, Lipitz said, "It made no difference. It was pointed at me."Eventually witnesses called 911. But so did Gilot. Lipitz told him to prove he was a police officer, that's what needed to happen. It's still unclear why Gilot decided to make the call.By the time the first officer arrived on the scene, Gilot put the gun back in a holster. Police found it on him -- loaded -- during a search conducted in the parking lot. He went to jail.Gilot's defense attorneys tried to poke holes in the actor's testimony calling into question his memory of the events. Some of Lipitz's testimony didn't match what he told police in an interview at central headquarters.The interview took place one block from where he performed."It's clearer now because I've been living with it for 14 months," Lipitz said of how he recalled the events from March 19.Closing arguments will begin Wednesday morning. Then the jury will begin deliberations. Prosecutors charged Gilot with terroristic threats and use of a firearm to commit a felony.