An armed man who was reportedly staring at people at a Kettering gym in late October is not allowed to possess firearms or return to Everybody Fitness, according to sentencing documents filed in Kettering Municipal Court.
As reported by the Dayton Daily News, 37-year-old Garreth Todd McNelly was sentenced Dec. 11 to jail time served after he pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of carrying a concealed weapon and obstructing official business. He also will be on five years of supervised probation, court records state. A charge of failure to comply with the order or a police officer, also a misdemeanor, was dismissed.
McNelly was arrested Oct. 27 at an Everybody Fitness location in Kettering after police responded to a 911 call about an armed man at the gym.
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“There’s some guy in there, but he is walking around with a pistol in his hand,” a caller to 911 said.
According to Jen Balduf and Kristen Spicker of the Daily News, Kettering police officer Cynthia James said officers found a man, later identified as McNelly, standing near the front door of the gym with a gun in his right hand down by his leg. “He was just staring at everyone who was inside utilizing the gym,” James said.
McNelly did not follow orders from police to put down his gun, so officers requested additional crews. Police were able to safely evacuate the gym while McNelly was reportedly distracted by crews outside.
McNelly continued to ignore commands issued by police over a public address system, James said. He had a notebook and would periodically write in it, but she said it wasn’t clear what he was writing.
He exited the gym after about 15 minutes. He intitially ignored commands to get on his knees, but eventually complied, James said. Officers approached McNelly with their guns drawn and were able to arrest him without further incident.
No injuries were reported and James said there were not any reports of McNelly making threats to people at the gym.
“They were only threatened by his presence,” she said. “It’s not normal for a person to be standing inside a gym not utilizing it and staring at everyone with a firearm in their hand.”
In addition to the gun in his hand, he also had a second loaded handgun and additional ammunition in a bag, according to court records cited by the Daily News.
