Naples man allegedly threatens boat club employees with loaded gun, says ‘I’ll get you’

Wearing a tactical vest and carrying a loaded handgun, Collier County deputies say a man pointed it and pretended to pull the trigger at two people.

Employees of Freedom Boat Club were closing down the docks for the night when they noticed 44-year-old Michael Shaffer standing about 10 yards away, pointing a loaded gun at the water, according to his arrest report.

Investigators say Shaffer then aimed directly at the employees and made a motion like he was firing. Luckily, he didn’t.

But Shaffer did proceed to walk closer toward them, saying “I’ll get you” before they could get away.

Shaffer’s mother—who did not want to be identified by name—says she knew her son carried a gun, but never believed he had any bad intentions.

“He had in his past job, he had a license to carry a gun. He was a security guard, and he was able to carry it, so he would lock it in his glove compartment in his car. That’s all I know,” she said.

Deputies say they found a stolen boat battery and jumper cables in his car. And after arresting him, Shaffer tried to escape using a handcuff key disguised as a pen.

“It just does not sound like him to do something like this…very surprised,” his mother said.

Investigators say Shaffer denied ever taking his gun out of his vest. He says instead that his car battery died nearby, and he was looking at ducks in the water until he got help.

Shaffer is still behind bars as of Thursday night without bond.