Tyler Perry pays off $400K worth of layaways

The Associated Press</span>
Published Thursday, December 6, 2018 9:29PM EST
Last Updated Friday, December 7, 2018 6:28AM EST

ATLANTA - Customers at two suburban Atlanta Walmart stores received a holiday surprise when they found out actor Tyler Perry had paid for their layaway items.

Perry, who intended the gift to be anonymous, confirmed the move in a video posted Thursday to Twitter.

He spent $434,000 on items at a Walmart in East Point and another store in Douglasville. That covered all but one penny of the balances.

In the post, Tyler said customers only had to pay one cent to get their purchases. He says he knows people are struggling and he's just "really, really grateful to be able to be in a position to do this."