Kenai police arrest man for threatening people with stick

A Kenai man was arrested Monday after reportedly threatening employees of a local business with a stick.

Around 6 a.m Monday morning Kenai Police responded to reports of a man standing on Bridge Access Road using a stake — wooden and about three feet long, according to Kenai Police Sgt. Paul Cushman — to threaten passing vehicles. The man, 36-year-old David O’Brien of Kenai, was arrested for third-degree assault and taken to Wildwood Correctional Facility.

Cushman said the assault charge came from an earlier incident at a nearby business. The wooden object O’Brien carried was carved, but Cushman was unsure whether or not it was pointed, and referred to it as either a stake or a stick.

“Originally officers were called because he was threatening vehicles, but when they got there they made contact with employees of a local business that stated he had come on to the property and was threatening to harm them,” Cushman said. “Then he did attempt to strike one of them with the stick. Officers got their statements and were able to quickly locate Mr. O’Brien in the area, who still happened to have the stick with him, and they were able to arrest him without incident.”

O’Brien denied threatening anyone, Cushman said.

Cushman said there were no injuries or damage to vehicles, and he wasn’t aware of drugs or alcohol being involved in the incident.

—Ben Boettger

More in News

The Alaska Board of Fisheries hears public testimony at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex in Soldotna, Alaska, on Feb. 18, 1999. (M. Scott Moon/Peninsula Clarion file)
Board of Fisheries again declines to hold Upper Cook Inlet meeting on Kenai Peninsula

The State Board of Fisheries this week rejected calls from the Kenai… Continue reading

U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski takes a selfie with Rose Burke at the Kenai Municipal Airport in Kenai, Alaska, on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. Burke won the 2024 U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree essay contest and will travel to Washington, D.C., in December to light the tree. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Connections student to light U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree

Rose Burke, 9, won the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree essay contest and will travel to Washington D.C.

Alaska State Troopers logo.
Soldotna man arrested for possession of child sex abuse material

He was taken to Wildwood Pretrial Facility

A cruise ship is docked in Seward, Alaska on Wednesday, May 25, 2022. (Camille Botello/Peninsula Clarion)
Seward gets nearly $46 million for power upgrades at port

The funds are intended to transform Seward’s port into a “green port”

Troopers Joseph Miller Jr. and Jason Woodruff are seen in a screenshot from body camera footage taken in Kenai, Alaska, on May 24, 2024. (Photo provided by Alaska Department of Law)
Grand jury indicts 2 troopers on felony assault charge

The complaint cites both audio and body camera footage

Foliage surrounds the Soldotna Police Department sign on Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2022 in Soldotna, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Escott named new chief of Soldotna Police

Stace Escott has been promoted to chief of the Soldotna Police Department,… Continue reading

Campaign signs fill a wall near Paradisos Restaurant in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Candidates spend big on radio advertising, print mailers in final weeks of campaign

Only a week before the general election on Nov. 5, candidates are… Continue reading

An Alaska Division of Elections Official Election Pamphlet rests on a desk in the Peninsula Clarion newsroom on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
When, where to vote in the 2024 general election

Tuesday is Election Day! Voters in the Kenai Peninsula Borough will head… Continue reading

Most Read