Wednesday night at approximately 6:00, the FBI detained a male suspect at the Marathon gas station at 802 South Main Street. The suspect has yet to be identified.
A law enforcement official told K105 the development is related to missing Tennessee teenager Savannah Leigh Pruitt, but the FBI has vehemently denied the activity is in any way related to the disappearance of Pruitt.
The missing girl was last seen by her parents at their Madisonville, Tennessee home between 11:00 and 11:30 on the night of January 13.
(Another law enforcement source would only confirm that the FBI was in Leitchfield conducting an investigation that originated in Tennessee.)
According to a Marathon gas station employee working at the time, the male suspect entered the store Wednesday evening and made a purchase. When he exited the store and returned to his vehicle, appearing to be a gray Ford passenger car, the suspect was immediately surrounded and taken to the ground by several FBI agents. The suspect was the only person traveling in the vehicle.
Within minutes, Leitchfield Police Department Sgt. Robert Jackson and Officer Eugene Cain, and possibly other LPD officers, arrived at the Marathon to assist.
The suspect, who stands around 5-foot-8 and was described by the Marathon employee as “chunky,” was then taken to the Leitchfield Police Department by Cain where he was apparently questioned for several hours by the FBI and possibly members of other law enforcement agencies.
Multiple federal law enforcement vehicles could be seen at Leitchfield police headquarters late Wednesday night, with authorities concluding their investigation in Leitchfield around midnight. Where the suspect was then taken is unknown.
The FBI, Tennessee Bureau of Investigations and Monroe County (TN) Sheriff’s Office have been leading the investigation into Pruitt’s disappearance, as the search for the teenager has spanned four states; Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, and Missouri.
K105 will have more information on this developing story as it becomes available.
(Headline photo of federal and local law enforcement around the suspect’s vehicle immediately after he was taken into custody)
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com or 270-259-6000
