KETTERING — A man is in custody after he was seen holding a gun inside a Kettering gym early Friday morning.
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Kettering police officers were dispatched around 5:06 a.m. outside Everybody Fitness at the 3000 block of Woodman Drive on initial calls of a man inside the gym holding a gun in his hand. News Center 7′s Taylor Robertson was the only reporter on the scene as the incident unfolded.
Upon arrival, officers saw a man standing inside the gym in front of the business with a handgun in his right hand and staring at all the patrons, Officer Cynthia James, Kettering Police Public Information Officer told Robertson.
The suspect was also seen armed with another handgun that was strapped across his chest and ignored officers’ request to put the weapon down.
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Officers were able to evacuate the gym of all patrons from a different door away from the suspect and also made commands for him to exit the building.
Robertson heard officers yelling orders on a loudspeaker for the suspect to, “come out with their hands up and drop the weapon.”
“He failed to comply to the commands over the PA for probably about 15 minutes,” James said.
He eventually got to his knees and was taken into custody.
The suspect has since been charged with failure to comply, obstructing official business, and a concealed carry weapon (CCW) violation, James said. A previous charge of inducing panic was dropped by the city prosecutor.
Kettering Police did not formally identify the suspect, but online jail records indicate that Garreth Todd McNelly was arrested at the 3000 block of Woodman Drive early Friday morning and is facing those charges.
Dayton Police assisted Kettering Police at the scene.
We will continue to provide updates on this developing story.