A man was arrested Monday afternoon after police said he used a bicycle as a weapon and used anti-gay slurs outside of the Wawa convenience store in Dupont Circle.
The Metropolitan Police Department said that 33-year-old Nehemiah Taylor of Miami, Florida, was charged with assault with a dangerous weapon after he struck a Wawa general manager with a Capital Bikeshare bicycle.
According to charging documents, police were called to the 1100 block of 19th Street NW at about 2:20 p.m. for reports of a man threatening people, yelling and "acting aggressively" towards staff members inside the Wawa store.
The store manager told police he asked Taylor to leave after he caused disruptions and made threats to staff and customers. Taylor allegedly exited the Wawa but turned to bang his hands on the store's front windows while yelling and screaming at the manager.
A witness who was sitting at a table facing the front windows told police that she saw Taylor then write "DIE" on the glass window while still banging on the glass.
After Taylor wrote on the window, the manager said he approached Taylor to ask him to stop and leave the area. But then Taylor allegedly grabbed a CaBi bike, struck the manager in the left forearm and used several anti-gay slurs.
According to charging documents, the manager said Taylor called him "every slur there is," and heard Taylor threaten to kill him.
Local
Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information
Police later arrived and stopped Taylor as he tried to leave the area.
According to police, Taylor admitted to striking the store manager in the groin area with the bike and told officers he didn't "like gay people."
