LANE COUNTY, Ore. — A Mapleton man was arrested Tuesday morning after allegedly threatening people with a large knife in the community’s business district along Highway 126, according to the Lane County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO).
LCSO deputies were dispatched around 7:30 a.m. after receiving reports that a man, later identified as 29-year-old Thomas Lynn Jessop, was pointing a knife at bystanders and making threatening statements while advancing toward them. The sheriff’s office says two individuals held Jessop at gunpoint until law enforcement arrived.
Before deputies reached the scene, LCSO said, another bystander sprayed Jessop with bear spray, prompting him to drop the knife and remove his clothing. Authorities said Jessop cooperated when deputies first made contact, but his behavior then escalated. Medics sedated him and took him to a hospital for evaluation and treatment…