Police responded to Everybody Fitness at 3070 Woodman Drive after a 911 caller reported there was a man inside holding a gun.
“There’s some guy in there, but he is walking around with a pistol in his hand,” the caller said, adding that they were in their car.
When officers arrived, they found the man standing near the front door of the gym with a gun in his right hand lowered near his leg, James said. He said a second gun in a holster strapped to his chest. Both guns were loaded and he had additional ammunition in a backpack.
The first two officers to arrive asked him to put down his weapon, but the man failed to respond, James said. Officers then requested reinforcements.
The man was reportedly distracted by the crews outside the gym and police were able to use a second front door to evacuate everyone inside.
Police then started issuing commands over a PA system, which the man did not follow, James said. The man had a notebook and would occasionally write in it.
It was not clear what he was writing.
After about 15 minutes the man stepped outside. He initially refused to follow orders to get on his knees, but eventually complied. Police could hear the man saying “no” once he was outside, but James said he was not yelling and was mainly silent.
Officers approached the man with their firearms drawn and were able to take him into custody.
James said there were no reports of the man threatening anyone inside 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.”
She added there are no laws that would prohibit the man from bringing a gun to the gym. If the gym has a no weapons policy he could be trespassed, James explained.
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