A quiet Kent neighborhood was disrupted the night of May 28 when a SWAT team surrounded a home on Franklin Avenue, fired “numerous chemical munitions into the home” and arrested a man wanted on multiple warrants, police said.
Kent police had attempted to arrest 30-year-old Jacob Scott Tharp at his home at 646 Franklin Ave. But the situation escalated into a standoff after officers reported hearing what sounded like a shotgun being racked inside the house, according to a police report.
Officer Michael Carnahan was monitoring Tharp’s home because the suspect allegedly was wanted on multiple warrants for offences “including aggravated menacing, obstruction and traffic offenses.” Carnahan noted that he had been cautioned about Tharp’s “violent tendencies.”
The incident report indicates that Carnahan had driven by Tharp’s residence earlier, and had seen people in the detached garage and a white work truck with a landscaping trailer Tharp was known to drive. Seeing the truck pulling out of the driveway and onto Franklin Avenue, Carnahan followed, only to see the truck pull back into the driveway. The officer activated his overhead lights and pulled his cruiser into the driveway.
“Tharp exited his truck leaving the driver door open and fled toward the rear of the residence,” Carnahan wrote. “I exited my cruiser while announcing Kent Police and giving a warning to Tharp that I had a K9 and he needed to stop or he would be bit.”
Tharp allegedly fled behind the home, but when Carnahan gave chase, he only saw two other people in the garage. Carnahan’s narrative states that they were not forthcoming when he asked them if Tharp had gone into the house.
The officer stated that he returned to his vehicle to prepare K9 Shaw for a track. By this time other units had arrived, and another KPD officer told him he’d heard what he believed to be a shotgun slide racking. All the officers took cover and set up a perimeter around the house.
Carnahan wrote that he saw an upstairs window on the north side of the house slide open. His report indicates that he remained where he was until Metro SWAT arrived at about 10 pm. That unit repeatedly ordered Tharp to leave the home. When Tharp did not, “Metro SWAT launched numerous chemical munitions into the home,” the report states.
The standoff ended when Metro SWAT officers entered the home, found Tharp and “took him into custody by force and fetter using a Taser,” the report states. Kent EMS transported him to UH Portage, where he was cleared and taken to the county jail.
While the incident was ongoing, police obtained a search warrant, but found no weapons or ammunition when they entered the home.
Tharp was charged June 5 with a fifth-degree felony charge of obstructing official business and a fourth-degree charge of inducing panic. The grand jury’s indictment states that Tharp knew his actions “would cause serious public inconvenience or alarm,” and would result in “economic harm” of $7,500 to $150,000.
Court records indicate that Tharp posted bail May 29 and is being represented by a public defender. A hearing is scheduled for July 15 in Portage County Common Pleas Court.
Wendy DiAlesandro is a former Record Publishing Co. reporter and contributing writer for The Portager.