Super-Fly Comics and Games owner Tony Barry got the call that a car plowed into the side of his business around 11:45 p.m. on Wednesday, June 3, and he was quick to the scene. Though the damage to the building was substantial, Barry said losses to his merchandise were “shockingly little.” (Photo by Reilly Dixon)
KAPOW!— Vehicle hits comic shop
- Published: August 28, 2026
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! No, it’s a red Chevy Tahoe that collided with the side of Super-Fly Comics and Games on Wednesday night, June 3.
No injuries were reported and Yellow Springs Police arrested one individual in connection with the incident: Xenia resident Shelton Da Costa was charged with failure to stop after an accident involving property of others, reckless operation, failure to control and hit-and-skip.
According to more than six witnesses of the incident and a bartender, Da Costa exited the Gulch Saloon around quarter to midnight. Attempting to drive out of the gravel lot behind the bar, he crashed into a parked car, causing significant damage to the impacted vehicle.
He then accelerated forward and smashed into the side of Super-Fly that abuts the alley, which connects the gravel lot to Dayton Street. According to that night’s bartender on duty, he pulled blindly onto the road, nearly causing another accident.
He was arrested several hours after the event and was transported to Greene County Jail.
Though all witnesses with whom the News spoke attested to Da Costa’s apparent intoxication that evening, Yellow Springs Police did not arrest him on charges of operating a vehicle impaired; Police Chief Paige Burge told the News earlier this week that such a charge would have been without probable cause.
Super-Fly took quite a hit from the collision. The car left a hood-sized cavity in the building — the impact toppling over several back-room shelves stocked with thousands of comic books.
Despite the size of the wallop, Super-Fly owner Tony Barry told the News the day after that his store suffered “shockingly little” merchandise damage — less than $500, he estimated at the time. It’s the clean up that he really laments.
“The shelves that came down were full of books in order and in meaningful piles and stacks — almost all our online sales, listings and overstock,” he said. “Now we have to reorganize and audit all of our stock — are they still in the same condition we listed them as? So, the legwork on resorting all of that is easily going to be 100 hours of labor.”
He added with dismay: “And Street Fair is right around the corner. What a nightmare.”
Still, Barry said he’s choosing to see the silver lining of the situation — it is, after all, the first major accident of the sort in the 19 years of Super Fly’s Dayton Street existence.
Not to mention, the damage done wasn’t enough for the fire department to condemn the building, so business has continued in the week since as usual. Plus, Barry said, shoddy construction of the wall that was taken out would occasionally lead to water seeping into the storage room — the true arch enemy of any comic store.
“So maybe a new wall will help — but that’s a solid maybe,” he said with a laugh.
Rogue cars notwithstanding, the comic business is good, Barry reported. The year’s Free Comic Book Day last month, on May 2, was Super-Fly’s best day of business since it opened almost two decades ago. Barry said an estimated 1,000 folks came through his doors.
On top of that, he’s been putting a considerable dent in his business-related debt.
“It’s not a big secret, but I’ve had some IRS debt that has been following me for a very long time, because when you’re 24 and you start a new business, you don’t always do everything exactly right,” Barry said. “Sometimes that shows up in some very loud and federal ways.”
He continued: “But thanks to Free Comic Book Day, I was able to make some moves and get the IRS off my back for the first time in many, many years.”
Looking ahead, Barry said he doesn’t need help in patching up the hole; his landlords are taking care of that work and all associated costs. Also, he’s not looking to recruit any more staffers or volunteers to help him catalog and organize the comics that were strewn about from the accident — he has a pretty rigid filing system and needs a trained eye to spot potential defects.
So how can one be a hero in such a case?
“Just come in and buy a comic if you can,” Barry said.
Super-Fly Comics and Games is located at 132 Dayton St. in downtown Yellow Springs. Hours are Monday–Sunday, 11 a.m.–7 p.m.
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Did I read that correctly? An individual, who multiple witnesses (including the bartender) observed as being ‘intoxicated, left a BAR…ran his automobile into a parked car and then a BUILDING. Yet, according to the YSPD, there wasn’t “sufficient evidence” to charge him “driving while impaired”? Pardon me while I pick my jaw up off of the floor. I feel for those who suffered property damage but am grateful no individuals were harmed…..this time.