Senior citizen points gun at neighbor, fights with deputies

A local man quickly learned how not to react when two Nye County Sheriff’s Deputies show up on his property to investigate a crime, even if there are no trespassing signs posted.

Barry Michael Dentler, 69, was arrested on Wednesday after hurling a barrage of profanities at deputies as they were conducting a criminal investigation at a residence on West Fawn Street.

The deputies were called after a neighbor of Dentler’s said the suspect pointed a firearm at him.

According to the arrest report, the victim drove his car onto Dentler’s property to ask whether Dentler had seen his cat, which had gotten out of the victim’s home earlier that day.

The victim told deputies that Dentler, who was outside at the time, immediately went inside the home where he allegedly retrieved a black rifle or shotgun and leveled the weapon in his direction, while yelling at the victim.

The report stated that the victim immediately put his car in reverse and left the property.

When deputies arrived at Dentler’s home to question him, he immediately flung open the front door and charged the deputies, while yelling “get the f**k off my property,” several times.

As Dentler continued to charge, one of the deputies attempted to subdue him by grasping his hands and placing him against a vehicle in the driveway.

The report states Dentler continued to resist the deputies’ attempts to place him in handcuffs.

Once restrained, the report stated that Dentler was mad because the deputies violated his no trespassing signs displayed in his yard and did not have permission to be on his property.

Deputies told Dentler that displaying a no trespassing sign does not give him the right to point a rifle at someone, which prompted Dentler to say “the hell it doesn’t.”

The report went on to state that Dentler later denied that he pointed a weapon at the victim.

Following their initial investigation, Dentler was arrested and charged with pointing a weapon at a person, assault with a deadly weapon, battery on a protected person, two counts of resisting a public officer and providing false statements/obstructing a public officer.

He was behind bars at the Nye County Detention Center on Thursday on an $11,920 bond.