A Knoxville search for a man wanted on burglary, false-imprisonment and assault warrants turned into a late-night standoff Thursday after officers spotted him inside a West Inskip Drive home and got no response at the door. The confrontation ended with two men surrendering instead of a forced entry.
According to a Knoxville Police Department release, officers went to the home around 9 p.m. while trying to locate 62-year-old Dewey Richards. Police said the warrants stem from an incident last Saturday at a Tillery Drive storage-unit facility, and that officers repeatedly knocked and announced themselves after seeing Richards inside. Crisis negotiators, the Special Operations Squad and the department's UAV team were called in, with negotiators and officers also trying to reach Richards by phone.
Specialized Teams Joined The Knoxville Response
The deployment echoed another Knoxville standoff earlier this year, when crisis negotiators and SWAT helped bring a shotgun-related incident at a Westland Drive convenience store to a peaceful surrender, as detailed by Hoodline. In Thursday's case, the police account does not mention a weapon, injuries or shots fired.
After continued efforts, Richards and 64-year-old homeowner Jeff Huling voluntarily surrendered and were taken into custody without further issue, police said in the department's release. Richards was arrested on the outstanding warrants, while Huling was charged with accessory after the fact. The release did not provide court dates or additional details about the underlying Tillery Drive case.
