Body cam image of New Philadelphia Police arresting 28-year-old Dyllan Riter
The New Philadelphia Police Department says it has released body cam footage in the spirit of transparency of what it described as a wanted suspect who wrestled a gun from an officer and fired a round at him.
The video – which comes with the warning of strong language and graphic content – has been posted on the police department’s Facebook page.
“Shots fired. Shots fired. He pulled the trigger.”
The suspect can be heard after the shooting claiming it was unintentional.
“I wasn’t trying to pull the trigger. I promise I was not trying to shoot you guys. I wasn’t trying to hurt nobody.”
Police captain rocky Dusenberry says the incident happened just after 8am when they were responding to reports of a suspicious person lying under a tree behind apartments in the 18-hundred block of east high avenue.
“A man was either sleeping or thought maybe he was passed away up against a tree.”
The suspect became combative after police learned he had been wanted for a pair of armed robberies in stark county and a parole violation. Dusenberry says the shot fired during Wednesday’s scuffle came very close to hitting one of the officers on the ground with the suspect.
“An inch. He was literal laying on the gun, and I was on top of the guy.”
The Stark County Sheriff’s Office identified the man as 28-year-old Dyllan Riter. He has previously lived in the area. Riter was taken to the Tuscarawas County Jail awaiting local charges.
A Stark County Sheriff’s Office press release says he was wanted for the robberies of Dollar General stores in Waynesburg and East Sparta. They have filed charges against Riter, including two counts of Aggravated Robbery, two counts of Child Endangering, Failure to Comply with Order or Signal of a Police Officer, and Theft.
Copyright WTUZ Radio Inc., 2026