Woman says she's now a 'prisoner in her own home' after gun-toting neighbor moves in next door

Daily Mail​

7 days ago

A Michigan woman says she lives in constant fear and hasn't been able to relax in years due to her gun-loving neighbor's alarming hobby.
Lois Laroe, who has lived in Ionia for decades, claims the man who moved in next door about three years ago has made her life a living hell.
The disrupting neighbor, Casey Wagner, has allegedly been shooting high-caliber guns at Tannerite - causing booming explosions in his yard day and night.
Along with having to endure the unrelenting sound of the explosive targets going off, Laroe has allegedly sustained property damage and has even been taunted by the gun-happy culprit.
'I haven't been out in my yard to do anything,' Laroe confessed to WLNS. 'I'm a prisoner of my own home.'
Laroe said she has trekked down to the Ionia County Sheriff's Department countless times, but Wagner has yet to face any consequences for his unneighborly behavior.
In March, Wagner's gunshots shattered a hole in Laroe's car windshield, she told the outlet.
A shocking photo also shows a window taped up in her home after Wagner allegedly damaged it.
She also claims Wagner caught wind of her efforts to stop him from blowing up explosives in the quiet neighborhood and sent her a chilling message.
'We found a balloon that said "Snitch" on it,' the concerned woman told WLNS. 'I have been everywhere asking for help.'
Laroe is not the only person disturbed by Wagner's shooting habits. Greg Sipka, who lives next to Laroe, agrees the gunfire is nuisance and has filed a police report about it.
'You'd hear them at 10 at night. You'd hear them at 6am. You'd hear them at 2:30 at night,' Spika told the outlet.
He said after he complained to the cops, it took about two weeks for anyone to come to his home to take the report.
Spika followed up with the sheriff's office about seven weeks later. To his dismay, the case was already closed.
An Ionia ordinance regarding 'Breach of Peace' explicitly outlaws what Laroe and Spika have both described.
'No person shall disturb the public peace and quiet by loud or boisterous conduct,' it reads.
Spika said back in September 2024, the township held a meeting to get to the bottom of the unsettling situation, although not much has changed since then.
He said that at the meeting, Ionia Township Supervisor Kurt Scheurer and Representative Gina Johnson said they would start issuing Wagner citations.
After that meeting, Spika claims Wagner had actually stopped recreationally shooting in his yard for about four months, but resumed in January.
Since he made his firearm comeback, Laroe and Spika are more fed up than ever. They claim Wagner has still not been cited.
Sheriff Charlie Noll told WLNS the department has launched an investigation into the matter and could not further comment. Wagner could not be reached.