Since 911 callers reported a fight in the parking lot of a bank on a Saturday afternoon in March, a BPD officer has been investigating and last week a Bloomfield man was charged with battery resulting in bodily injury.

Michael J. Koontz, 50, Bloomfield, was in Greene Superior Court last Thursday, May 27, for an initial hearing on a charge of battery resulting in bodily injury, a Class A misdemeanor.

The charge stems from an investigation by Deputy Marshal Wayman JR Blazier of the Bloomfield Police Department into a fight in the parking lot of Farmers and Mechanics Bank in Bloomfield on Saturday, March 6.

Around 3:40 p.m. that Saturday afternoon, a caller to Greene County Dispatch reported the fight and said a white SUV and a silver passenger car had left the lot heading east. Then a second person called 911 to report the fight. Officer Blazier was on scene with another incident but left and attempted to locate the vehicles, without success.

Not long after, a woman and man showed up at the sheriff’s department and said they were at the lot when Koontz started yelling at the man, who was the alleged victim of the battery. Greene County Sheriff’s Deputy Davis Aerne took the initial information from the two and took photographs of the man’s injuries which included redness to an elbow and the back of his neck. Officer Blazier met with them later at another location.

During an interview, the man explained he was a passenger in the car driven by the woman and they were going through the ATM lane trying to finish a transaction when Koontz pulled into the lot and started pointing at him and yelling for the man to get his things out of the Koontz residence. The man explained he did not have a way to get to work and had been staying at Koontz’s in order to be closer to his workplace. There was some misunderstanding or disagreement about the arrangement and Koontz was demanding the man get all his stuff out of his house.

The man had gotten out of the vehicle to talk to Koontz, but said when Koontz raised his voice, he tried to get back in the vehicle but Koontz started poking him in the chest, prevented the door from closing, and threatened to burn all the man’s things.

The situation escalated and Koontz allegedly grabbed the man, threw him on the ground and hit him in the back of the head while threatening to beat the man.

The woman confirmed the story and said she tried to record the incident on her phone – the video was provided to the officer. She said after she got out of the car and started telling Koontz to let go of the man, Koontz let go, threatened to beat her too then got in his vehicle and drove away.

When Koontz was interviewed later, Koontz said the man was always coming in and out of the house, was rude to Koontz’s girlfriend and would not pay to stay there. Koontz allegedly admitted he did grab the man and put him on the ground, and that he did threaten to burn his stuff.

A review of video from the bank showing the ATM area did show Koontz driving in then exiting but did not show the physical incident.

A criminal case was filed against Koontz on April 21 and he was summoned to appear in court last Thursday. Koontz has retained a defense attorney from Terre Haute to represent him.