Atmore man jailed after forcing way into girlfriend’s car at gunpoint
By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
The following felony arrests were reported by officers of the Atmore Police Department (APD) during the period April 11-20:
Rodney Williams
The 36-year-old Atmore man was arrested April 15 after he reportedly jumped into his girlfriend’s car and forced her at gunpoint to begin driving.
According to APD reports, police were sent to the 100 block of Patterson Street around 11 p.m. after dispatchers relayed a report of a domestic dispute in progress. While enroute to the scene, officers “encountered a vehicle stopped in the middle of Maxwell Street, near the intersection with Patterson Street.”
The woman reportedly jumped from the vehicle as officers approached and told them her boyfriend had a gun. The preliminary police investigation revealed that Williams “entered the victim’s vehicle armed with a handgun and forced her to start driving.”
As she did so, Williams fired one round out of an open window. Officers later recovered the handgun and the spent shell casing.
Williams was placed under arrest and jailed on one count each of second-degree kidnapping (a Class B felony) and third-degree domestic violence, menacing (a Class A misdemeanor). He was released on bond that same day.
Tyson Knight
Knight, 23, was arrested April 16 when city police narcotics officers and Special Response Team members executed a search warrant at a house in the 200 block of 4th Avenue.
According to police reports, the warrant was obtained and the raid carried out after police put the residence under surveillance due to complaints from citizens of drug activity in the area. Police served the warrant around 7:55 a.m., reports show.
The hunt for illegal substances turned up “several dozen grams” of marijuana, along with “items used to ingest narcotics.”
A 20-year-old male who was in the house was jailed on misdemeanor (second-degree) pot and drug paraphernalia possession charges. Knight and the second person were processed into the Escambia County Detention Center (ECDC).
Jail records show that Knight, who is charged with first-degree possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, and the other person were both released a few hours after their arrest.
Jonathan Owens
The 44-year-old Perdido man was jailed April 15 on a felony drug possession charge after he was stopped by police as the subject of two outstanding misdemeanor arrest warrants.
According to APD reports, police confirmed the status of the warrants and blue-lighted the vehicle around 2 p.m. as Owens drove it along North Main Street.
Once the suspect was in cuffs, an APD K9 unit arrived and alerted on the vehicle. A search led to discovery of “a small amount of a crystal-like substance that field-tested for methamphetamine and items that are used to ingest narcotics.”
Owens was released from the county jail April 17 after being booked on one count each of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. No word was provided as to disposition of the misdemeanor city warrants.
Heather Shanks
The 41-year-old Atmore woman was arrested April 18 on a felony drug possession charge after her vehicle, which did not have a license plate, was pulled over on Old Bratt Road.
The traffic stop was conducted around 11 p.m. During the reporting officer’s conversation with Shanks, he learned (a) her driver license had been revoked, (b) there was no insurance on the vehicle, and (c) she was not the owner of the vehicle.
Police called a wrecker to tow the vehicle, and during an inventory prior to towing, a small amount of synthetic cannabis (Spice) and items used to ingest narcotics were discovered.
Shanks was booked into the ECDC on one count each of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. She was still on the jail’s inmate roster Monday morning, April 21.
Charlton Jones
Jones, a 36-year-old Atmore resident, was jailed April 20 after city police responded around 11:28 p.m. to a domestic disturbance complaint at a Jack Springs Road residence.
As officers arrived they spotted Jones running away from the scene. He was located after a brief search and arrested.
After a brief search the officer found Jones and took him into custody. A pre-arrest pat-down revealed he was in possession of a glass pipe containing a substance that field-tested positive for methamphetamine.
He was processed into the county jail, where he remained Monday morning, April 21, on one count each of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Police noted that Jones is also wanted for two outstanding misdemeanor arrest warrants previously obtained by APD. He also faces a potential misdemeanor domestic violence-related charge in reference to the original call.
Charlie Crook
The 37-year-old Bay Minette man was arrested April 18 after he was spotted in a vehicle being driven on the shoulder of the road for an extended period.
As the officer ran a check on Crook’s driver’s license, he discovered Crook had outstanding arrest warrants with APD and Bay Minette Police Department.
A search of Crook’s person and his vehicle led to discovery of “a small amount of methamphetamine, some marijuana, and items used to ingest narcotics.”
Crook remained in jail Monday morning, April 21, held on one count each of possession of a controlled substance, second-degree possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Theron Riley
The Atmore man, 28, was jailed April 17 on a felony pot possession charge after officers recognized him as the subject of several outstanding misdemeanor arrest warrants.
Officers had been searching for Riley since the warrants were issued. They finally made contact with him around 8:45 p.m. on Jack Springs Road. He was searched prior to being taken into custody and had “more than two grams of marijuana” on him. More damaging though was the discovery of a firearm in the vehicle.
Riley, who is prohibited from possessing a weapon due to a previous conviction, was taken to the ECDC, where he was booked on one count each of being a certain person forbidden to possess a firearm, first-degree possession of marijuana (had a prior conviction for second-degree possession), and possession of drug paraphernalia.
He was still in jail Monday afternoon, April 21.
Samuel Bostic
Police arrested the 49-year-old Atmore man April 17 on a felony drug possession charge after the vehicle he was driving was pulled over around 2:45 a.m. on North Main Street due to its being driven without headlights.
The reporting officer “noted suspicious behavior” as he talked with Bostic and detained him. During a search of the Atmore man’s person prior to placing him in cuffs, police found a glass pipe that contained a residue that field-tested positive for methamphetamine.
Bostic was jailed on one count each of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was processed into the ECDC, from which he was later released.