Deputies said the 18-year-old employee pinned the man until they arrived at the business Sunday night.
OCALA, Fla. — An 18-year-old car wash employee tackled and helped disarm a man who deputies say threatened workers with an axe as the business was closing Sunday night in Ocala, leading to the arrest of 36-year-old Bryce Thayer.
Authorities said the confrontation unfolded at Tidal Wave Auto Spa on Southwest 95th Street Road at about 8:30 p.m. on March 8. The case quickly drew attention because surveillance and body-camera video captured the takedown, while interviews with one of the workers filled in how a routine closing shift turned into a violent struggle. Deputies later booked Thayer on felony assault charges, and the employee at the center of the encounter said he acted because he believed his brother and co-workers were in immediate danger.
According to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, employees were locking up for the night when Thayer arrived and was turned away. Deputies said he became agitated and then approached workers while holding an axe in a threatening manner. One of those workers, Leo Pino, 18, later told WESH that he heard the man yelling near his co-workers, including Pino’s 16-year-old brother. Pino said the man was shouting about his missing wife and claiming she was trapped inside the car wash tunnel. Pino said he pointed toward the exit and told the man to leave, but the situation changed when the axe was directed toward his younger brother. “That’s when I knew for sure what I was going to do,” Pino said. “I saw the situation, I saw he was a danger, and I didn’t even think about it.”
Surveillance video showed the worker lunging forward and wrapping up the suspect near the front of the business. Pino, who said he trains in jiu-jitsu, described grabbing the man around the midsection so the axe could not be swung freely. He said he used an inside trip to bring him down, then stayed on top of him while others moved in to help. During the struggle, Pino said, his brother was able to get control of the axe. Deputies arrived to find Thayer being restrained by the employee, according to sheriff’s office accounts summarized by local outlets. Pino told reporters he held the man down for about five minutes until deputies took over. “I put my brother and my co-workers’ safety before mine,” he said. Reports reviewed did not indicate that any employee suffered a major physical injury.
The location of the confrontation helped explain why the encounter became so chaotic so quickly. The workers were at a car wash, finishing up the day, when a man they did not know began yelling about someone being trapped in the tunnel area. That claim was repeated by Pino in his television interview, but no public report reviewed identified any missing woman at the business or suggested that anyone was actually inside the tunnel in distress. That left the workers dealing not only with an armed man but also with a confusing and rapidly shifting situation. The episode also unfolded outside, where customers and staff would normally expect an ordinary end-of-day shutdown rather than a confrontation involving a large edged weapon.
Once deputies secured the scene, the focus shifted from the takedown to the criminal case. Thayer was arrested and accused of two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill, along with one count of possession of drug paraphernalia. Deputies said they found a meth pipe on him during the arrest process. Local reports said he was taken to the Marion County Jail and remained there as of Tuesday night. A sheriff’s office account cited by other outlets said his bond was set at $11,000. The probable cause facts described publicly so far center on what workers told deputies, the video evidence from the business, and the weapon recovered at the scene. Court proceedings will determine how prosecutors move forward on the felony assault allegations.
Pino’s remarks after the arrest gave the story a second layer beyond the dramatic video. He did not describe his actions as heroic in grand terms. Instead, he spoke in direct, practical language about seeing danger and responding. He said his training helped him stay focused during the struggle, and he said he would put himself between the threat and his co-workers again if he had to. He also told WESH that he has already enlisted in the U.S. Army and expects to head to Fort Sill in Oklahoma later this year. “I already know what my career path is,” Pino said. “I know I’m gonna retire in the Army.” Those comments, alongside the footage, turned a local crime report into a story about instinct, training and a fast decision made in a few seconds.
The case stood Wednesday with Thayer in custody on the charges reported by local outlets and the takedown video circulating widely. The next major milestone will be the early court handling of the charges in Marion County and any release of additional records by investigators.
Author note: Last updated March 11, 2026.