FREDERICKTOWN – The man who law enforcement officials say pointed a gun at a Fredericktown police officer last week has been apprehended, according to Knox County Sheriff David Shaffer.
Darren L. Price, 38, of Howard, was taken into custody Thursday afternoon, Shaffer said in a press release. He was found at a residence in North Liberty, near the Richland County line.
The Knox County Sheriff’s Office issued a warrant for Price’s arrest Tuesday, having used public tips and private investigative tactics to identify the suspect.
New information from the Mount Vernon Police Department in the days that followed prompted the sheriff’s office to reach out to the U.S. Marshals Service and its Southern Ohio Fugitive Apprehension Strike Team, Shaffer said, which provided technical support and personnel to assist in locating and apprehending Price.
Price was apprehended at 2:19 p.m. Thursday, Shaffer said. He is currently being held in the Knox County Jail.
It’s currently unclear if Price has been charged. Shaffer and Knox County Prosecutor Chip McConville were unavailable for comment Thursday afternoon.
Shaffer said Tuesday that Price’s warrant was issued “on probable cause that we have to back up the charges we’re looking at,” Shaffer said.
Those charges included fleeing and eluding and having weapons under disability.
“He’s got a felony drug conviction out of another state and that is the basis for the weapons-under-disability charge,” McConville said.
Price has a long criminal record locally, court documents indicate. He has accumulated four felony charges and 15 misdemeanor charges over the last 20 years.
Price pleaded guilty in 2001 to 13 counts of forgery, as well as breaking and entering, and was sentenced to 22 months in prison. He was convicted in 2004 of failure to comply with a police signal or order, a third-degree felony, and was sentenced to four years in prison.
Price has also served jail time on charges of domestic violence, unauthorized use of a vehicle, and criminal trespassing.
Price was convicted twice in May of driving under FRA suspension, the penalty issued in Ohio for drivers who demonstrate a lack of financial responsibility. He was scheduled to have a pay-plan hearing on July 14 in Mount Vernon Municipal Court.
Last Thursday’s incident began as a traffic stop, Fredericktown Police Chief Kyle Johnson said. Patrolman Josh Jones pulled Price over for a registration violation, as his license plate did not match the maroon Pontiac sedan he was driving.
When Jones approached the vehicle, Price allegedly pulled a gun on Jones, pointing it out of his driver’s-side window.
It’s still unclear if Price fired his weapon, although Johnson said Jones fired his duty-issued sidearm as a result. While Jones was not injured during the altercation, Price’s medical status is unknown.
Price fled the scene after shots were fired, and Jones followed. He eventually lost the suspect near the Richland County line. Price’s vehicle was found abandoned in Richland County approximately two hours later.
Jones has since been placed on paid administrative leave, per department policy, while the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation completes its investigation. Price remained at-large for nearly a week, as local and state authorities asked for the public’s assistance in locating him.
This case remains under investigation by the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, Fredericktown Police Department and BCI.
