GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) -Members of a church in Northeast Gainesville are coming to terms with the reality that their services have been disrupted by the arrest of a man wanted by police. The incident took place Sunday at the Gainesville Christian Center service.

Many church members were outraged after church services were disrupted. According to the police report, an employee at Dollar General reported that Anthony Gainey Jr. was threatening the store clerk while shoplifting. Officers saw him with a shopping bag and tried to arrest him, but he ran into the church and officers followed him. Gainey’s father was there.

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“When I looked at the aggression they showed when they were trying to put handcuffs on my son, it made me sad because at the end of the day, we were trying to tell them that he had a mental illness,” Anthony Gainey Sr. added.

Church attendees captured video of the chaotic moments during Gainey’s arrest.

The arrest report states Gainey robbed the store, tried to escape while being arrested, and ran into the church. Gainey’s father told me his son had a mental illness

“My son was never part of a gang or accused of being a gang member. So is the child abuse incident involving his own son. Typically people you know sometimes put all of this out there to justify their actions,” Gainey Sr. added.

City Manager Cynthia Curry responded to the incident by saying, “I can only imagine how deeply this affected the community. It also makes me extremely sad that this happened in front of the families and children.”

The police department continues its investigation to shed light on the events that occurred during the ceremony.

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