Waffle House Shooting Suspect Travis Reinking In Custody, According To Police [Breaking]
According to the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, officers have taken Travis Reinking, suspect in Sunday morning’s shooting at an area Waffle House, into custody. The department first announced his apprehension in a tweet via its official Twitter page.
The arrest announcement came just nine minutes after an image of a laptop bag, believed to belong to the suspect, was tweeted out along with information on where it was found by a citizen. Metro Nashville PD stated that the bag contained only “a handwritten ID card bearing the name Travis Reinking.”
BREAKING: Travis Reinking apprehended moments ago in a wooded area near Old Hickory Blvd & Hobson Pk. pic.twitter.com/00ukga37s6
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) April 23, 2018
Prior to the arrest, Metro Nashville Public Schools had canceled all after-school activities “in an abundance of caution.”
https://www.facebook.com/MetroSchools/posts/10156214578794890
As of this writing, the circumstances of Reinking’s capture, including where he was captured and whether or not he resisted arrest, have not been made clear.
Meanwhile, a clearer picture is emerging of the alleged shooter and his possible motives.
According to a Monday CNN report, Reinking had his guns taken away twice.
The first time was in June 2017. At the time, Reinking was living in Illinois, in an apartment above his father’s crane-rental business. According to police reports from the time, Reinking came downstairs from his apartment wearing a pink dress and holding a rifle. He allegedly began harassing his father’s employees, yelling “”Is this what you f***ing want?” He then threw his rifle into his pickup truck and drove away.
Later that day, Reinking showed up at a public pool and jumped into the water, wearing a pink women’s housecoat, and allegedly showed his genitals to staff there. According to police, they advised Travis’ father, Jeff Reinking, to “lock up” the family’s guns until Travis got mental help, which Jeff apparently said he’d do.
The second incident happened in July and August of 2017. In July, Reinking somehow managed to get past a White House security barrier and make his way towards the building, before being apprehended by Secret Service agents. He allegedly told officers that he wanted to meet with Donald Trump. Afterwards, federal agents worked with county authorities back in Illinois to restrict his access to guns. In August, Tazewell County authorities seized guns and ammunition from Reinking’s home.
However, Tazewell County Sheriff Robert Huston said Sunday that authorities couldn’t legally keep Reinking’s gun from him. They were returned to Jeff Reinking, who is believed to have returned the guns to his son. One of those guns is believe to be the very same Bushmaster AR-15-style rifle that was recovered from the scene of the Waffle House shooting.
This is a breaking story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
