Search continues for suspect in the fatal shooting of a Tennessee deputy; 2 related arrests made
MARYVILLE, Tenn. — Law enforcement authorities in eastern Tennessee continued their search Saturday for a man accused of fatally shooting one sheriff’s deputy and wounding another during a traffic stop.
More than $80,000 in reward money has been promised for information leading to the arrest of 42-year-old Kenneth DeHart, Blount County Sheriff James Lee Berrong said.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said it has issued arrest warrants charging DeHart with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and possession of a firearm in the Thursday night shootings. Deputy Greg McCowan, 43, was killed in the shooting, while Deputy Shelby Eggers, 22, was treated at a hospital and released, the sheriff’s office said Friday.
A spokesman for the sheriff’s office said the search was ongoing Saturday. Law enforcement officials were expected to conduct a “non-tactical ground search” Saturday afternoon in an area northeast of Maryville, where DeHart’s vehicle was found abandoned, WBIR-TV in Knoxville reported.
“We are determined to track him down,” Berrong said on Friday. “We are going to catch him and he will be brought to justice in Blount County.”
The agency said in a news release Friday that officers initiated a traffic stop on an SUV. The car was stopped on suspicion of erratic driving, Blount County District Attorney Ryan Desmond said.
The driver, identified by authorities as DeHart, refused to get out of the SUV and a deployed stun gun had no effect, the agency said. The driver pulled out a gun and fired shots, striking both officers. At least one deputy then returned fire and DeHart drove away, the agency news release said. Authorities said McCowan later died at a hospital.
Desmond said Friday that DeHart’s brother had been arrested and charged with aiding and abetting the suspect after the killing. The brother was jailed and Desmond said he was due in court on Monday. A woman identified by media as the girlfriend of the shooting suspect was also arrested Thursday evening on her own charge of “accessory after the fact” in neighboring Sevier County, where records show she was also jailed Saturday.
A procession of law enforcement vehicles joined a hearse carrying McCowan’s body as it traveled through Maryville, about 17 miles (27 kilometers) south of Knoxville, on Friday.
McCowan began his career as a deputy in 2020 after graduating from regional law enforcement training, Berrong said Friday.