Accused of hurling a metal rod at a police officer and swinging a machete at others while dancing on an overpass, a Cheyenne man now faces up to 10 years in prison.
The case against Mark Romain Dunn, who turns 61 this year, rose to the felony-level Laramie County District Court on Thursday.
Dunn was dancing on an Interstate 80 overpass in Cheyenne and swinging a metal bar just after midnight March 15 when a police officer came to confront him, according to an evidentiary affidavit filed in the case.
Cheyenne Police Department Officer Jayson Tretter pulled up in his vehicle. Dunn reportedly hurled a metal rod at the driver’s side of Tretter’s vehicle from about 10 feet away, and Tretter was able to maneuver his vehicle out of the way.
Tretter turned around and held Dunn at gunpoint until other agents arrived.
Officer Brian Ahearn arrived on scene with other officers and tried talking to Dunn.
Yup, That’s A Machete
Dunn was rambling incoherently and could not stand still, moving around almost continuously, says the affidavit.
Ahearn later wrote that Dunn looked like he was on a stimulant, like methamphetamine.
Dunn reportedly ignored officers’ commands to drop the stick or rebar he was holding.
Dunn approached Tretter and Ahearn with the object still in hand. One agent (the affidavit doesn’t say which) shot Dunn with a “less than lethal” projectile and arrested him, says the document.
Officers soon discovered Dunn’s weapon had in fact been a large machete, the affidavit says. And the object Dunn allegedly threw at Tretter was a piece of cylindrical metal about 6 feet long.
Dunn is charged with one count of felony interference with a police officer, which is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and $10,000 in fines; and one count of misdemeanor drug use, punishable by up to six months in jail and/or up to $100 in fines.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
