Police: Former employee threatens to blow up Shadyside gym
Pittsburgh police arrested a man Wednesday after he allegedly threatened people with a knife inside a Shadyside gym.
Police responded just after 9:30 p.m. Wednesday to X Shadyside at 5608 Walnut St. in response to a report of a disorderly man.
The man was later identified as Daniel Abebe, 56, of Pittsburgh, who the gym’s owner told police was a former employee who had been fired.
According to police, employees said Abebe walked into the business barefoot, smoking a cigarette and demanding to see the owner, saying he was owed money.
When employees told him the owner was not there, they told police he grew more irate and threatened them, allegedly saying, “I will blow this place up.”
Abebe refused to leave. An employee said he pulled out a knife and lunged at a front desk employee, verbally threatening her.
”While holding the knife he demanded $100,” police said.
An employee talked with Abebe and got him to put down the knife, police said.
Police filed several charges against Abebe, including robbery, aggravated and simple assault, making terroristic threats, reckless endangerment, criminal mischief, criminal and defiant trespassing and disorderly conduct.
He was being held at Allegheny County Jail, police said.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 30, according to court records.
Brian C. Rittmeyer is a TribLive reporter covering news in New Kensington, Arnold and Plum. A Pittsburgh native and graduate of Penn State University's Schreyer Honors College, Brian has been with the Trib since December 2000. He can be reached at brittmeyer@triblive.com.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.