A bike theft near Twin Lakes early Thursday morning led to gunshots, according to a Juneau Police Department press release.
A little after 4 a.m. Thursday, a 42-year-old man called JPD to report that he was in his white Oldsmobile van parked on Glacier Highway when he felt it start to shake, according to the release. When the man looked outside, he saw a man taking his black and white Huffy bicycle from the top of his van. The thief told the man, “I am taking this bike,” according to the release, and the suspect then left on the stolen bike.
The owner of the bike boarded his red GMC truck and followed the suspect up Blackerby Street, yelling at him to leave the bike, he later told police. The suspect then reached into his backpack and pulled out a pistol, the release states, and fired three shots at the owner of the bike. The shots hit the passenger-side door of the truck, police say, and the driver ducked and drove away. The bike thief rode the bike away, the release states.
JPD Public Safety Manager Erann Kalwara said the victim was asleep in the van at the time of the theft, but Kalwara isn’t sure whether the man lives in the van.
No injuries were reported, as Capital City Fire/Rescue Assistant Chief Ed Quinto said CCFR did not respond to the scene. Bartlett Regional Hospital spokesperson Katie Bausler said nobody was admitted to the hospital for a gunshot wound Thursday morning.
At 4:13 a.m., two neighbors called JPD to report hearing a car spinning its tires and hearing three gunshots, according to the release. Police were on the way when they got the call from the owner of the bike telling his story.
A JPD officer intercepted the suspect on the stolen bike at about 4:30 a.m. near Craig Street, according to the release, and detained the suspect. The man was identified as John E. Gregory, a 26-year-old Juneau resident, police say. The officer took a 9mm pistol from Gregory, the release states.
Gregory has been charged with first-degree robbery, third-degree assault, fourth-degree theft and fifth-degree weapons misconduct, according to the release. He was taken to Lemon Creek Correctional Center and held without bail.
The area was closed off to traffic and was not reopened until just before 9 a.m., according to the release.
• Contact reporter Alex McCarthy at 523-2271 or amccarthy@juneauempire.com. Follow him on Twitter at @akmccarthy.
