Man is charged after holding 5 hostages in Douglas County

April 18, 2012|news release from Douglas County Sheriff Chris Degase

AVA, Mo. -- Douglas County sheriff's deputies Cpl. Brad Loveless and Deputy Nathan Long responded to a home on Highway K on Monday after getting a report about a man holding his wife hostage. While deputies and Sheriff Chris Degase were en route, dispatch told them that two neighbors and two more family members who went to the home to help the wife were now being held at gunpoint as well.

Loveless and Long arrived first and began speaking with the man on the PA system. Deputies were able to get him to release the two neighbors and two family members. The wife was able to hide in the house while the other four were leaving but she did not exit the house at that time.

The man went to the front door with a weapon in his hand and looked out momentarily, then stepped back inside. Deputies were able to continue speaking with him and surrounded the home while awaiting the arrival of Degase.

After Degase’s arrival, it was learned the wife was able to exit the home through a downstairs door and flee the home. After continued directives by deputies, the man stepped from the home unarmed and stood on the porch but refused to come off the porch and get on the ground.

Degase and the deputies approached the man and saw a sawed-off shotgun and a pistol strategically placed on some children’s toys in the yard, loaded with additional ammunition within feet of where the man was standing. When they reached the man, he continued to refuse directives by Degase and deputies and, after a brief struggle, was taken into custody.

The man is Tommy Gunter, 57, of Ava. He's now charged with first-degree domestic assault, armed criminal action, unlawful use of a weapon and second degree assault. His bond is $75,000.

After searching the home, deputies found a TV that had been shot with a gun, and numerous guns were found strategically placed throughout the home near windows and doors. Numerous rifles with sniper-type scopes on them were near the windows that faced the driveway where Loveless and Long were positioned.

Degase is proud of the way Loveless and Long handled the situation.

“The only reason we were fortunate enough to not have someone injured or killed during this standoff was because of the courage and actions taken by Cpl. Loveless and Deputy Long," he said.

|

|

|