Man accused of trying to run down manager of GetGo in Pine Township over $6 for gas

A man who screamed obscenities at employees and made vulgar gestures over a $6 charge for gasoline at the GetGo in Pine Township was charged with a felony after he tried to run one of them over in the parking lot, according to authorities.

Northern Regional Police charged William Robert McKee, 56, of the 2500 block of Mae Drive in Hampton with a felony count of aggravated assault along with counts of simple assault, reckless endangerment, disorderly conduct and driving with a suspended license.

McKee was released on an unsecured bond and ordered to appear before District Judge William Wagner for a preliminary hearing on March 1, according to court records.

A manager at the store told the officer who responded to the convenience store in the 100 block of Towne Center Drive on Jan. 20 that McKee was parked at a pump and came inside to pay for $9 worth of gas minus a $3 discount he had, according to a criminal complaint.

She told police that McKee became irate when he was told he owed $6 and tried to “explain the math to him,” the complaint said.

When employees asked McKee to leave he began making obscene gestures toward them before walking to his car, investigators said.

A manager who followed him outside to record his license plate number told police that McKee began revving the engine and then accelerated and tried to run her over, according the criminal complaint.

Police said video from surveillance cameras inside the store confirmed the series of events described by employees and an outside camera show the manager moving quickly out of the way to avoid being hit by McKee’s vehicle, which then ran several stop signs in the mall parking lot as it fled, the criminal complaint said.

Investigators were able to use the video to track McKee’s vehicle registration, which was suspended.

When police questioned McKee by telephone about the incident he told them that he had a “misunderstanding” with them and it was “no big deal,” the complaint said. He told police that he agreed to leave the store when asked and did not plan on returning.

Police said McKee’s comments confirmed that he was the person they saw on the security video from the store.