Bomb Squad Officers in Right Place at Right Time to Make Carjacking-Kidnapping Arrest

3/12/2013

March 12, 2013                   

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

A Nashville man hustling for money outside a Nashville convenience market is jailed tonight after he allegedly resorted to the crimes of carjacking and kidnapping after a pair of citizens refused to give him any cash.  Unfortunately for him, Officers Kevin Pollard and Gerry Gann from the Bomb Squad happened along as everything unfolded and quickly worked to intervene.
          
William Buchanan, 36, of Country Meadow Drive, was in the parking lot of the Mapco at Stewarts Ferry Pike and McCrory Creek Road at 1 p.m. holding a plastic gas can and asking persons for money.  Buchanan had cut out a portion of the gas can and secreted a loaded .357 pistol inside.  Hermitage resident Christopher Smith, 25, reported that he was standing outside of his Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck when Buchanan approached and asked for cash.  Smith declined and urged Buchanan to move on.  The response apparently prompted Buchanan to pull his pistol from the gas can and order Smith into the truck.  Already in the passenger seat was Smith’s friend, Kerry Anderson, 31.  Smith sat in the middle as Buchanan, with gun in hand, got behind the wheel and drove away.
          
Officer Pollard, who was stopped in traffic at a nearby red light, saw what appeared to be a struggle taking place inside the truck and heard calls for help.  He and Officer Gann, who was close by in a separate police vehicle, also saw Anderson waving his arms out the passenger window.  The officers activated their emergency equipment and got behind the truck as it traveled onto the shoulder of McCrory Creek Road and stopped.  At that point, Buchanan tossed the pistol out of the window.  He was taken into custody without further incident.
          
During questioning by Detectives Andrew Injaychock and Johnny Crumby, Buchanan admitted to hanging around the parking lots of gas stations asking for money.  He indicated the victims in this case made him angry by not giving him any cash.
          
Buchanan is being held in lieu of $150,000 bond.  At the time of today’s arrest, Buchanan was free $15,000 bond connected to three January felony drug charges, and a separate $4,000 bond related to his second offense DUI arrest from last month.

###