CHILLICOTHE, Ohio — New details from a police report reveal that Thomas McCray’s return to jail last week began with a confrontation at a Chillicothe Pilot gas station — where he had been hired as an employee, unaware that a member of his victim’s family worked there alongside him.
According to a Chillicothe Police Department report, McCray had recently been hired at the Pilot at 1111 East Main Street. The situation unraveled when McCray noticed a locker in the break room belonging to a coworker and told management there would be a problem if that person worked there. When management pressed him for an explanation, McCray disclosed his criminal history.
What management then discovered stopped them cold. The coworker is the father of the 2-year-old boy who was found strapped in a car seat along the Scioto River in April 2001, the night his mother Stephanie Evans was murdered.
Management immediately contacted the regional manager, who made the decision to terminate McCray by phone while he was still on the clock.
What followed, according to the report, was a series of increasingly threatening calls. After being fired, McCray called the regional manager back minutes later. When told the decision was final, McCray responded — according to a written statement — with the words “have a nice day, suck my dick bitch boy, I’ll beat your ass, I’ll fucking kill you.” The regional manager told investigators he was very scared and believed the threat was credible. He requested charges be filed.
A separate witness told police that before he was fired, McCray had referred to his coworker as his “enemy” and said upon learning he had been terminated, “I’m going to beat his ass right now” before leaving the store.
Management contacted corporate security, which dispatched personnel to the facility. The regional manager was directed to leave the premises by his district manager due to the direct threat made against him.
Officers contacted McCray at his listed address. He was read his Miranda rights, which he waived. McCray acknowledged calling the regional manager and cursing at him, but denied making death threats, saying he was fired for no reason and felt he was being discriminated against. He also said his coworker had been posting about him on Facebook. McCray told officers he was not trying to go back to prison and was heading to see his parole officer.
Despite McCray’s account, investigators determined charges were warranted based on the regional manager’s statement. McCray was charged with menacing, and his parole was violated by the Adult Parole Authority.