Make wishtv.com your home page

Police: Greenfield man threatened kids with bat

GREENFIELD (The Daily Reporter) — Two children told police a stranger chased them around a neighborhood park, swinging a metal baseball bat and threatening them, according to court documents.

The suspect now faces two criminal charges accusing of him of recklessness with a deadly weapon and disorderly conduct.

Jon Reeves, 39, 944 Runnymede Drive, Greenfield, was arrested this week and appeared before Hancock Superior Court 2 Judge Dan Marshall. He pleaded not guilty to the accusations he faces.

Prosecutors have filed two counts against Reeves: one Level 6 felony count of criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon and one Class B misdemeanor of disorderly conduct.

The felony Reeves faces carries a maximum penalty of 2.5 years in prison; the misdemeanor he faces carries a maximum penalty of 180 days in jail.

The incident occurred in the community park inside the Indigo Springs subdivision, located on the east side of Greenfield, east of Blue and McKenzie roads.

A neighbor who witnessed the incident called 911 after the children ran into her yard while trying to get away from Reeves, court documents state. The man was chasing the children from the park with a metal bat and shouting profanities at them, the neighbor said, according to court documents.

When officers arrived to investigate, the children said they had been playing in the park when the man – a stranger, they said – came up to them holding a baseball bat, court documents state. The children said the man made them nervous.

Then the man started swinging the bat at them angrily, the children told police. When they ran away, the man chased them, the children said. The man said to them, “I’m going to get you,” and “You need to stop whining,” court documents state.

The children told police they ran to a neighbor’s yard for help. They said the man stopped chasing them only when he saw another adult in the area, according to court documents. He walked away and went inside a nearby home, they said.

The children gave police a description of the man they said tried to hurt them and pointed officers toward the home the suspect entered.

Officers visited the residence and met Reeves, who fit the children’s description. There was a metal baseball bat lying in the driveway of the home, court document state.

Investigators noted in their reports that Reeves “was visibly trembling and appeared to be nervous” when talking with them.

Reeves said he was walking in the area and had the bat with him “for no reason,” court documents state.

He told officers the children were playing in the park, and they shouted something inappropriate at him. The kids took off running, and Reeves said he chased after them for a few steps before stopping.

Reeves has been released from the Hancock County Jail on $1,600 cast bond. He’s been ordered not to have contact with the neighborhood children involved in the incident. He returns to court for a hearing Sept. 28.

Never miss another Facebook post from WISH-TV

Crime Map
Use Search Bars Above To Search Crime Data