Micah Tuck of Spring Valley Twp., just south of Xenia, was in intensive care at Miami Valley Hospital on Wednesday and expected to be discharged in several days, Person said. Xenia police are keeping him under guard. Tuck hasn’t been charged yet but police expect him to be charged with one count of aggravated robbery, two counts of abduction, three counts of attempted murder and numerous weapons charges.
In all, anywhere between 16 to 18 rounds were fired. The officer driving the cruiser received a minor laceration on his left arm either from the flying glass of a bullet graze.
“We feel blessed” that there weren’t more injuries or a fatality, Person said.
The confrontation began around 5:50 p.m. Tuesday when Tuck, who has a concealed carry permit, entered the GameStop, 110 Hospitality Drive, where he took a game console and four games, according to a preliminary investigation. He then pulled his weapon on the two male clerks and demanded money from the cash register. He did not order the clerks to put the money in a bag, so they left it on the counter when Tuck ordered them at gunpoint out of the store and into one of the clerk’s cars, Person said.
A short time later, Tuck got out of the car, apologizing to the clerks for the robbery. “He asked ‘Where’s the money?’ When told he’d never told them to put it in a bag, he said, ‘My bad’ and left,” Person said.
Officer Mark Margioras was in the Colorado Drive area, just south of Upper Bellbrook Road, when he spotted a man fitting the suspect’s description. When he approached the suspect, the man turned toward him and the officer spotted a handgun in his belt.
Margioras drew his weapon and ordered the man to freeze, Person said. “The suspect made a move toward his weapon and the officer yelled ‘Don’t do it’,” the chief said. Instead, he fled on foot.
A second police cruiser appeared just as the man fled. The two-man squad cut off the fleeing suspect on Montana Drive. As it pulled to a stop, Tuck charged toward the squad, firing his handgun. The rounds blew out the windshield and passenger window. Both officers attempted to take cover.
Person described how the officer in the passenger seat was laying on top of his partner and returning “suppression fire” to get the gunman away from the cruiser.
Margioras, who was pursuing on foot, ran into the middle of the gunfight and fired two rounds, one hitting Tuck in the back. Person said police fired 10 or 12 rounds. The state Bureau of Criminal Investigation is collecting evidence and recreating the confrontation, he said.
Person said Tuck apparently walked the six miles from his Spring Valley home to the GameStop.
Spring Valley neighbor Dean Smith he was surprised when he heard the news. “He was always friendly, always seemed like he was in good mood. … When they told me what had happened, I couldn’t believe it was Micah.”
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