CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio. A Rushsylvania man was arrested late Monday on a criminal trespass charge after gas station staff on S. Court Street said he was already banned from the property, according to Circleville police.
The account comes from approved Circleville Police Department case R26-02622. An arrest is not a conviction.
Just before midnight on Aug. 31, 2026, Officer Swaggerty was sent to a gas station on S. Court Street on a trespassing complaint. Staff pointed out a man the officer recognized as Eric Lee Proffitt, 41.
Officers asked dispatch to check the business trespass log. Staff wanted Proffitt off the property and listed as trespassed. Proffitt said he worked there. Officer Swaggerty told him that if he stayed, he would be arrested. Proffitt left through the front doors.
Dispatch then said Proffitt had been trespassed from that business before. A manager said the store wanted charges filed because of the earlier ban.
Officer Swaggerty and Officer Irwin contacted Proffitt on S. Court Street and arrested him for criminal trespass under Ohio Revised Code 2911.21(A)(1). That law makes it a crime to knowingly enter or remain on someone else’s land or premises without privilege to do so. A prior trespass warning, plus the manager’s request for charges, is what the report cites.
Officer Irwin took Proffitt to the Pickaway County Jail, where jail staff accepted him.
The report lists no injury and no force used. Criminal trespass under this division is a fourth-degree misdemeanor. Court records will show the final charge and outcome.
Anyone with more information can contact Circleville Police at 151 E. Franklin Street or (740) 474-8888.
Based on Circleville Police Department case R26-02622 and the official text of the Ohio Revised Code. Charges are allegations.
