A heavily armed man was arrested after allegedly holding a woman captive in her home.
Thomas Franklin Dinkins, 34, of Lake Panasoffkee, was being held without bond on multiple charges following his arrest on Wednesday by Sumter County sheriff’s deputies.
A neighbor, who was armed with a gun, heard gunshots at a home in the area of County Road 422A in Lake Panasoffkee. He went to the home and as he approached it, he spotted Dinkins who appeared to be holding two rifles, according to an arrest report. Dinkins ordered the other man to put his gun down. The man put his gun down and asked Dinkins why he had been shooting his weapon. Dinkins told the man, “People were out to get him.”
When deputies arrived on the scene, they determined Dinkins was holding a shotgun and a rifle. He had a silver handgun in his left pocket. That gun had a round in the chamber. A bullet hole was found in the home and there were two bullet holes in a neighbor’s vehicle. There was an abandoned vehicle nearby which had its windows shot out.
A woman who lives with Dinkins said he had pointed a gun at her and threatened to shoot her. He tore a phone off the wall to prevent her from calling 911. He demanded her car keys. She gave him the keys and he drove off, but returned shortly thereafter.
Dinkins, who has a long criminal history, was also found to be in possession of marijuana.
