A man is now in custody of mental health officials after he made a naked dash through Wal-Mart, swam in a river, and sprinted across a Warwick highway.
Police were called to the scene at the Wal-Mart store at the Rhode Island mall around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday when they received calls that a naked man was running through the store screaming and yelling incoherently.
“A gentleman identified as Michael Ray went into the Wal-Mart after parking his vehicle in the parking lot apparently at that time he was without a shirt but he was still wearing his under garments. Mr. Ray then walked toward the back of the store near the electronics area where he disrobed completely,” Colonel Stephen McCartney, Chief of Warwick Police told the WPRO Morning News with Tara Granahan and Andrew Gobeil.
According to McCartney the man was cornered by Wal-Mart personnel and “good Samaritan” shoppers who were trying to figure out what was wrong. Quickly they realized the man needed mental help. “At that time Mr. Ray would only answer the questions they asked by screaming, they then also noticed several other physiological changes, he was foaming at the mouth. They then called police,” said McCartney.
Police and rescue arrived on scene to find Ray running from the store. The police witnessed him jumping into the Pawtuxet River where he swam across and then proceeded to run across Interstate 295. “We did apprehend him up on the median strip of 295 which was a very dangerous situation,” said McCartney.
McCartney said the man was sent to Kent County Hospital for psychiatric evaluation. After talking to family members of Ray, police discovered that the man suffers from a bi-polar disorder and McCartney hypothesized he may have been off his medication.
“Just two weeks ago this gentleman graduated from URI and got a second degree, so it is kind of a very difficult tragic situation,” said McCartney. It is not clear if he will face any criminal charges.
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