An Ocala man was arrested recently after he allegedly swatted away the hand of a deputy who was trying to get him to calm down and back away from her.
Gregory Shia Klancko, 45, of 7180 NE Fort King Place, was charged with battery on an officer and resisting an officer without violence.
Marion County sheriff’s deputies responded to Klancko’s residence to assist the Department of Children and Families with an investigation. Investigators were already on the scene, but they had to flee for their safety after a verbal disturbance, according to the sheriff’s office report.
Two DCF investigators told the deputies that during their investigation, they were in the bedroom speaking to the owner of the residence when Klancko barged through a closed door and demanded to show them something now because he needed to leave for work. Klancko is a non-paying roommate at the residence, the report said.
The investigators told Klancko they were in the middle of an investigation and couldn’t look at what he wanted to show them. They went to close the door, which Klancko had opened to enter the room, when he blocked it from being shut with his body and foot. Klancko was being aggressive, so they left the residence and called for assistance, according to the report.
Klancko tried to interrupt the investigators while they were telling the deputies what happened. When given the opportunity to give his account of the incident, Klancko became verbally upset by a comment by one of the investigators and started shaking. He then started yelling at and advancing towards the investigators, the report said.
A deputy stepped between Klancko and the investigators and told him to calm down or leave. Klancko continued to yell and cuss and refused the deputy’s request. The deputy explained to Klancko that the investigators were conducting their investigation and needed to be left alone. Klancko then made another comment about having to leave to go to work, and the deputy said he was free to leave, according to the report.
Klancko yelled he wasn’t going to work or anywhere else, and he continued to yell and cuss. The deputy started talking to the investigators, which caused Klancko to become more irate and start walking towards her. At no time did the deputy walk or move towards Klancko, the report said.
The deputy extended her left hand at chest level to keep a gap between her and the Klancko. She told him to back off and Klancko said no. He lifted his hand and put it in the deputy’s face. When the deputy told him not to put his hand in her face, Klancko looked at her hand, which was still chest level, and smacked it to the side, according to the report.
The deputy grabbed Klancko’s right hand and told him to put his hands behind his back. Klancko started to push and pull away from the deputies and didn’t comply with orders. He was finally secured into handcuffs and placed in the deputy’s patrol vehicle. The incident was captured on body camera, the report said.
Klancko was taken to the Marion County Jail, where he was later released on $6,000 bond.