KNOXVILLE, TN -- Early in the morning of May 25th, just a bit after midnight, local and state
law enforcement authorities attempted to raid an isolated home in western
Knox County. The purpose of the raid has not been stated at this time, but
may involve illegal drug trafficking. The ownership of the home is in some
question, since the records detailing the owner are unaccountably missing
from the files of the County Clerk's Office.
During the course of the attempted raid, several law enforcement personnel
were injured, and the house itself, stated by persons living nearby as a
large two-story valued at nearly $300,000, was completely destroyed by a
fire. The Sherriff's Department is refusing to make any comment on the
actual events that transpired during the raid, stating that any release of
information could jepoardize an ongoing investigation.
Local residents are quoted as saying that at least one Sherriff's Department
vehicle was apparently totally destroyed in the incident, and as many as
twenty law enforcement personnel suffered moderate to severe burns and had
to be taken away in ambulances or by emergency helicopter. The Sherriff's
Department will not comment on these reports, but it has been anonymously
confirmed that as many as a dozen law enforcement personnel were evacuated
to the Erlanger Burn Care Unit in Chattanooga.
There are no records that anyone was incarcerated in the County Jail
subsequent to the raid, nor have there been any statements about any
evidence found. The speed with which the structure burned to the ground, and
the apparent extreme heat that lead to the injuries of the law enforcement
personnel, would however seem to suggest some sort of drug laboratory or
other illegal enterprise was being conducted at the house.
The Sherriff's Department spokesperson has flatly denied any and all
accounts given by local residents of wierd sounds, uncanny winds, and
several unidentified flying objects being noted in conjunction with this
event.
