Man swings saw blade, claims gang affiliation at downtown Spokane bar

A man was arrested Sunday night after he allegedly held a saw blade to another man’s neck and claimed to be a gang member outside a bar in downtown Spokane.

Police responded to the bar, Stray, at 415 W. Sprague Ave., after a security guard tried to intervene in the assault. The man, identified as John N. Michaelson, 25, was wielding a 6-inch folding saw, shouting profanities and claiming to be a member of the Piru Bloods, a Los Angeles street gang, according to court documents.

Witnesses said Michaelson threatened to “cut everybody” and “pull the pin and kill them all,” according to court documents. He faces a second-degree assault charge and is being held in the Spokane County Jail on a $15,000 bond.