Madison Co. deputies find suspect hiding in refrigerator
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MADISON COUNTY, Tenn. — A Madison County sheriff‘s deputy found a break-in suspect hiding in a refrigerator Tuesday morning, according to Sheriff John Mehr. The sheriff said the deputy probably saved the subject’s life. “He thought it would only be a few minutes and they would leave when they didn’t find him,” Mehr said. “They took the time to clean the refrigerator out and put all the food on the counter.” Mehr said they responded to a break-in around 4 a.m. Tuesday at a home on Oxford Drive that set off an alarm. When deputies arrived, Mehr said they followed tracks to a neighbor‘s house across the street and found Justin Gibbs hiding in a standard-sized kitchen fridge. “He said thank you for getting me out cause he was having a hard time breathing,” Mehr said. Katryna Howard said she has relatives who live on the street. “You hear about it in other neighborhoods, but things happen and, you know, crime knows no neighborhood,” she said. Neighbors said they are surprised. “That’s crazy, but I mean it’s good he got caught cause if I had caught him he wouldn’t have had the chance to go to jail,” neighbor Willie Price said. Deputies estimate the 6-foot-1-inch suspect hid in the refrigerator between 30 and 40 minutes. Mehr said investigators probably saved his life. “He told them thank you for getting me out,” Mehr said. “He was sweating because he was out of breath — I mean, he was glad to get out.” The case remains under investigation, but Mehr said there is a good possibility Gibbs was involved in the break-in. The sheriff‘s office said Gibbs currently is in custody and could face charges once they finish the investigation.
