Terrible news coming out of Belle Meade yesterday:
Police say Paavola, a 46-year-old personal trainer at Balance Fitness at the Belle Meade Galleria, died after he was attacked with a hatchet and a second “cutting instrument” by Domenic Micheli, 36, a former employee at the gym who Paavola fired 14 months ago.
Investigators say Micheli came into the gym at 6:55 a.m. Monday where Paavola was working with two clients. Micheli had been seen pacing in the parking deck just prior to the attack. Police say Micheli fled in a silver Toyota Prius or Yaris.
Micheli had been away from Tennessee for some time before Monday’s murder and was arrested outside the White House in April for unlawful entry. His Facebook page includes a series of strange rantings calling him the “Sun of God” and alluding to the Ebola virus, a vengeful angel and in one particularly chilling missive, declaring there would be “no more mercy.”
It’s sad that stuff like this is becoming more commonplace in the greater Nashville area. Seems that just within the past couple of months, an incident like this happens every week. But, what’s alarming to me is that this happened 24 hours ago, and there’s virtually no coverage of it. Not a lot of updates in terms of the status of Micheli, a guy who is obviously dangerous.
So, why aren’t we talking about this more?
Let’s just line up the facts – there is a man out there who walked into a business yesterday, murdered someone with a hatchet, and the guy is still on the loose.
I don’t get it – is it because he didn’t murder multiple people with an assault rifle? Didn’t shoot up a school? Is that not newsworthy? I genuinely don’t understand. Why is this not deserving of breaking news updates like we got for other recent tragedies?
It’s terrifying….a man that’s willing to bring a hatchet into a business in broad daylight and kill someone is obviously a threat to the public. It’s been a day, and all that I can find is that the attack happened, the guy is still on the run, and he might be driving a Toyota.
This just seems like a huge breakdown in reporting, communication, or something. But, it’s a tad unsettling.
Be vigilant, Nashville. Keep your eyes peeled, call police if see/know anything, and let’s hope that this guy:
…sees the justice he deserves.
You can donate to Joel Paavola’s family here.
Read more on the story from J.R. Lind at Nashville Patch.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Alabama Crimson Tide football, the WWE, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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