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ST. LOUIS — A long dispute about illegal dumping at a popular Catholic parish here has boiled over into assault charges after police say a maintenance worker was nearly run over by an octogenarian.

Roland Clubb, 80, a neighbor of St. Raphael the Archangel in the quiet St. Louis Hills neighborhood, has been charged with second-degree assault.

Clubb is accused of trying to run over a St. Raphael maintenance worker, Robert Schlueter, 66, on Friday morning after Schlueter told him not to dump in the church’s trash bins. St. Raphael the Archangel is at 6000 Jamieson Ave.

Clubb owns duplexes in the area and is alleged to have been filling St. Raphael’s trash bins over the years to dispose of belongings from former tenants. Items included some appliances and large amounts of trash, prosecutors said. The church had to hire a private company to empty the bins.

The bins overflowed many times, and Schlueter, who has worked at St. Raphael for 18 years, repeatedly told Clubb not to use them.

Instead, Clubb began “persistently harassing� Schlueter, police said.

Then, on Friday, Clubb tried to run down Schlueter in Clubb’s GMC Canyon pickup truck, police said.

Schlueter jumped out of the way.

Clubb then stopped the truck and yelled profanities at Schlueter in the “presence of the children,� police said.

The school’s video surveillance captured the incident, police said.

Clubb is charged with second-degree assault of "special victim" because the victim is considered a senior citizen. The special victim status means the felony is more severe. It is punishable by five to 15 years in prison.

The Rev. Thomas Molini of St. Raphael wouldn’t discuss the incident or say if he had ever intervened in the matter. Molini referred questions to Brecht Mulvihill, a spokesperson for the archdiocese.

Mulvihill said Schlueter was uninjured but “certainly upset by the situation.�

The children in the lot were never in any danger, he said. The incident took place near the Jamieson entrance, and children on recess were more toward the back of the property, he said.

“The incident itself was so brief that I don’t know that the folks that were out on the parking lot even know it had occurred,� Mulvihill said.

The school principal did not return messages seeking comment.

On Monday, two neighbors came to court to speak on Clubb’s behalf, as did his daughter.

Clubb’s lawyer, Peter Bruntrager, said the supporters mainly were speaking about his character and what he does for people in neighborhood. Twice a week, he brings bread to an inner-city church, Bruntrager said.

Bruntrager said his client had no criminal history to speak of. He’s a longtime St. Louis resident who is very active in the community and has the support of his neighbors, Bruntrager said.

But Schlueter said, in a statement read in court, that he asked Clubb a year ago to stop dumping in the church dumpsters.

Since then, Clubb has been a menace, Schlueter said in his statement. He has threatened Schlueter with obscene hand gestures and yelled threats, even in front of the children at school. Schlueter felt like Clubb was stalking him and feared for what Clubb might do to him.

“He has every minute of every day to make bad decisions,� according to Schlueter’s statement read in court.

“I am in fear,� he wrote.

Clubb was arrested Friday and spent three nights in the St. Louis jail.

Prosecutors asked Judge Catherine Dierker on Monday to hold him in jail until trial without bond. They said it would be nearly impossible for him to have no contact with the church because he lives directly across the street.

If released, however, prosecutors asked that someone sponsor Clubb and pledge to check on him so he doesn’t break the rules. They also asked for electronic monitoring and a no-contact order with Schlueter or the church.

Dierker allowed Clubb to be released on bond with electronic monitoring on house arrest. He is prohibited from driving and can’t have contact with Schlueter or the church.

“This is a peculiar situation,� she said.