A man walked into a Pennsylvania car dealership with $39,000 in cash — in a blue bucket.
Altoona police say Perry Semelsberger wanted to buy a vehicle at Courtesy Motor Sales Tuesday night.
He allegedly “pushed a wad of $100 bills into the cleavage of a female employee,” the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports, and accused another worker of shorting him cash.
From the paper:
Mr. Semelsberger “was acting very strange and appeared to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol” when he picked up a plastic bin of Legos in a waiting room and dumped it out, a criminal complaint said. Mr. Semelsberger poured his money into the Lego bin before he “lifted it above himself and dumped the money on his head,” police wrote. Mr. Semelsberger then started walking around and giving money to customers and employees, including the woman who had money stuffed into her dress, police said.
Semelsberger allegedly demanded a car and while the sales manager was counting the cash, Semelsberger said, “Don’t be shorting me or I’ll light a fire under your ass.”
He then pulled out a loaded handgun and threatened to “blow this place up” and “torch this place.”
A witness said 15 police cars descended on the dealership and Semelsberger was arrested.
“I was returning home about 9 o’clock we saw on police car after another spending into the Courtesy Motor lot. We counted about 15 cars and didn’t see any ambulances or a firetruck so there was a lot of curiosity of what was happening,” a witness told Fox 8.
He was charged with making terroristic threats, indecent assault and reckless endangerment, and as of Thursday, remained in the Blair County Prison.
WFMJ reports a woman who answered the phone at Semelsbergers’ home declined to comment except to say he was “overly medicated” and “needs help.”
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