Bicyclist arrested for menacing, panhandling

Police arrested Mark Arden, 49, who allegedly threatened to kill a couple while he was asking for money.

The incident occurred on Monday night around 9:15 a.m., when the victims were walking in Downtown Dayton around E. Second and St. Clair streets. The pair told police the man on a bicycle was circling them as they walked, was difficult to understand, and asked them for money. They said no, and continued to walk north on St. Clair.

The victims told police he continued to follow them and they were afraid. They called police after they say the man threatened to kill them if they walked into a parking lot. The victims stayed at the intersection, walking back and forth to try to stay away from the man until police arrived and arrested the man identified as Mark Arden, 49.

The officer, in his police report, said the man had a claw hammer in a hastily attached soft cooler on the front of the bike. He was taken to Montgomery County jail, where he is being held on aggravated menacing charges and panhandling. He has a court hearing Tuesday afternoon in Montgomery County.