Two members of a Life Time Fitness were held at gunpoint in the club’s parking lot but were unharmed, according to a media report.
The incident occurred Feb. 4 at the Life Time Fitness in Indianapolis. The members are two sisters, 21 and 16, who saw two men pulling on car door handles in the parking lot.
“That’s when I immediately thought, ‘Oh, shoot, they’re robbers,’” one of the victims told Indianapolis TV station WTHR.
The sisters, who asked not to be identified, claim the robbers then attempted to carjack their car.
“Before I could even say anything, he was in [her sister’s] face with a gun in her face telling her to get out of the car,” one of the victims said.
One of the sisters threw the keys in the snow and screamed for help. That’s when the two men left the victims’ car and got in another car with two other men, who then sped away from the scene, according to the TV report. The only item stolen was a cell phone.
“It was violent. I was scared,” one of the victims said.
Police are still searching for the suspects. Five “smash-and-grab” incidents occurred in the same parking lot in the past 90 days, according to WTHR.
When asked about the Feb. 4 incident in Indianapolis, Life Time Fitness spokesperson Karen Jayne Leinberger said: “This isn’t a health club dynamic; it’s a retail dynamic. It sickens me that individuals would choose to prey upon others, whether they visit the mall, grocery store or other retailer, such as Life Time.”
Leinberger also said Chanhassen, MN-based Life Time has security measures that monitor all areas of its clubs, including the outside of the clubs.
“We see relatively low incidents of such activity at Life Time,” Leinberger said. “Regrettably, however, it does happen on occasion. More often than not, we see that what prompts such activity is items of value being left in vehicles in clear sight. Additionally, doors have been left unlocked. In light of this, we periodically post signage and issue member notifications to provide helpful reminders to protect belongings and, importantly, we work regularly with law enforcement to help ensure safe, secure environments. This is a commitment we take very seriously and intend to be relentless about upholding.”