Jacksonville, Arkansas



From the Jacksonville Patriot of July 5, 2004

Home invasion thwarted by armed citizen



Two quick-thinking Jacksonville residents turned the tables on an apparent home invasion suspect Tuesday, police say.



Initially, a strange man got the upper hand on a female resident, who lists her address as 615 Northeastern Ave. in Jacksonville. The woman told police that she had heard a knock at the backdoor of the residence and thought it was the man whose address was also listed as 615 Northeastern Ave., as well.



The woman said that she then went to the door and opened it only to have a male suspect, later identified as Thomas Perrow III force his way into the residence. The woman advised that Perrow refused to leave and told her to stay put as well. Perrow also allegedly told the woman that someone was trying to kill him.



While the male suspect went into another room, the woman grabbed up her keys and fled to her van. Up the road, she met up with the actual man she had thought had been knocking upon the backdoor.



After the woman told him what had transpired at the residence, this man took a gun out of his truck and tried to gain entry through a side door of the residence. The man told police, however, he had to break the door to gain access because it had been locked with a chain.



The man advised that upon entering the residence, he observed a white male standing in the kitchen. The man told police that he then grabbed the white male by the shirt and pointed his gun at him while asking him, “‘Why he was at his house?’”



Perrow allegedly replied that he had been running from “some black males.”

No arrest report was accessible in connection with this case. However, Jacksonville Police Department officials indicated that Perrow now faces a burglary charge stemming from this incident.