A national radio show broadcasted from Neenah Saturday, taking a deeper look into the hostage situation last year at Eagle Nation Cycles.
The three-hour broadcast called "For the People" discussed the standoff from December 2015, during which Neenah police shot and killed Michael Funk, an employee at Eagle Nation Cycles. Officers mistakenly thought he was the accused hostage-taker Brian Flatoff.
The show's host, Keith Alan, said the goal of the show was to address injustices in Funk's death. The show took place inside Eagle Nation Cycles in front of an audience.
Eagle Nation Cycles owner Steve Erato joined in the broadcast with Alan. The two said the problems between Neenah police and the motorcycle shop started back in 2012 when officers raided the store.
In 2015, Officers said they believed Funk was the hostage-taker, but Erato says police knew who Funk was.
"We just kind of feel like there was an injustice for one," said Alan. "Michael Funk lost his life, we think tragically, and we feel like there was some malicious intent that was involved and we're just not very happy with the outcome."
Erato recently dropped a citizen's complaint he had filed against Neenah Police Chief Kevin Wilkinson. We spoke with Chief Wilkinson when the complaint was filed, and he said the investigation into his officers was thorough.
"You can see they're meticulous," said Wilkinson. "They take these things very seriously, break it down to each detail, and make sure they're doing everything as circumspectly as they can to get it right."
Some of the hostages, Neenah Mayor Dean Kaufert, and Michael Funk's brother were all in the crowd for Saturday's radio broadcast.
The goal of the show was also to keep Funk's memory alive.
