Dayton, OH – A Trotwood man wounded in a shootout at a Sunoco gas station last week now faces federal charges for illegally possessing a firearm, prosecutors announced Monday.
Walter Rodgers, 35, was charged after investigators said he retrieved a gun during the Sept. 2 exchange of gunfire on East Third Street. According to charging documents, Rodgers ran inside the Sunoco after being shot at, pulled a firearm from his bag, and returned fire outside the station.
Police recovered the gun at the scene. It was covered in blood, and Rodgers was struck during the shootout, authorities said.
Court filings also allege Rodgers shouted, “I’m going to do ya’ll like I did Cierra,” during the incident, an apparent reference to his former girlfriend Cierra Chapman, who has been missing since 2022. Chapman’s disappearance remains unsolved.
Rodgers has prior felony convictions in Montgomery County for aggravated burglary and abduction. Federal law prohibits convicted felons from possessing firearms, a crime punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Ohio. The ATF and Dayton Police Department assisted in the investigation.
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Key Points
- Walter Rodgers, 35, charged with illegal firearm possession after Dayton shootout.
- Rodgers allegedly returned fire at a Sunoco gas station while wounded.
- He referenced missing woman Cierra Chapman, his former girlfriend, during the incident.
The gas station shootout has now escalated Rodgers’s case to the federal level.
