Authorities in Hamilton County, Tennessee, have taken drastic measures to protect the public, resulting in the fatal shooting of a 38-year-old Georgia sex offender who had allegedly abducted a young child.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) disclosed on February 1st that 11-year-old Aubriauna Mays had disappeared on January 30th from the Halls area of Knox County, prompting the issuance of an endangered child alert.
TBI officials suspected Edward Ahrens, a registered violent sex offender, of taking the girl and heading south on Interstate 75 towards Georgia. In a coordinated effort on February 2nd around 1 a.m., Knox County Sheriff’s Office Juvenile Detectives, along with members of the Technology Crimes Division and Narcotics Unit, joined forces with Catoosa County, Georgia, and other local Tennessee law enforcement agencies to locate the suspect and missing child. The pursuit led them to intercept the suspect’s vehicle as it exited the interstate at Exit 1 in East Ride.
Reports from the Knox County sheriff’s office indicate that Ahrens disregarded commands from law enforcement and purportedly deliberately struck at least three detectives. In response, four officers discharged their firearms, striking Ahrens.