A naked man spent more than four hours on top of the Volunteers of America building in Dayton and wrote on the wall of the building in his own blood, according to witnesses at the scene.
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Crews were dispatched around 11:35 a.m. to 1931 S. Gettysburg Ave. after a man climbed atop of the building, removed his clothing and burned his clothes, police said. He then stabbed himself several times in his leg.
Volunteers of America is a re-entry facility for formerly incarcerated individuals and offers veterans services. Police could not confirm if the man was living at the building.
During the more than four-hour incident, bystanders could hear the man yell “help, call 911” and “help they’re going to kill me.” He also told police officers he wanted the “real police,” said Sgt. John Garrison of the Dayton Police Department.
The man was seen jumping across the rooftops and smeared blood on the building. The words “Pig for Life” could be seen written in blood along with several other splotches of blood spanning the walls.
Officers laid mattresses on the ground in case he fell.
Just after 3:30 p.m., the man voluntarily came down with officers in a ladder truck.
“There was no justification for using any type of lethal force. He wasn’t creating any danger to anyone but himself,” Garrison said. “And we decided instead of using a less lethal force option, which would be something along the lines of a taser or bean bag rounds ... since it was so cold outside we decided to wait him out.”
The man told officers he had taken drugs, Garrison said. Police are considering citations for inducing panic and vandalism. The man broke a window and tore down a satellite dish.
About 50 bystanders at one point were at the scene, and at least 15 Dayton police officers and Montgomery County Sheriff’s deputies responded.