5 arrests made in connection with Lincoln County burglaries

Published 1:13 pm Friday, April 5, 2024

Five arrests have been made in connection with three vehicle burglaries and an attempted structure burglary Thursday.

Sheriff Steve Rushing said a 9-1-1 call was received at approximately 4 a.m. about a possible burglary in progress at the shed of a home on Jackson-Liberty Drive. The caller also reported a white pickup truck in the driveway.

As deputies responded, they met a truck fitting the description and began pursuit. The vehicle wrecked at the intersection of Jackson-Liberty and Zetus Road, and a subject ran from the scene. He was later identified as Justin Christopher Tilley of Port Gibson.

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Another homeowner reported a burglary and believed there were two or three additional people involved.

Rushing said two 16-year-olds from the Vicksburg area were apprehended, and were “very uncooperative.” They were transferred Thursday to a juvenile holding facility.

“While searching the vehicle, officers located firearms which were traced back to a residence on Zetus that had three vehicles broken into,” Rushing said.

Sheriff Rushing said three other arrests were also made in connection to the burglaries.

Tilley, age 22, was charged with auto burglary, reckless driving, driving on the wrong side of the road, and misdemeanor fleeing or eluding police in a motor vehicle.

Two other subjects were arrested after attempting to pick up one of the juveniles who had fled into the woods, Rushing said. Jessica Johnson of Vicksburg, age 35, was arrested and charged with two misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance. Nathan Rowell of Delta, Louisiana, age 24, was arrested on an existing Mississippi Department of Corrections Warrant from Warren County.

Additional charges are pending on Johnson and Rowell, Sheriff Rushing said.

“Our guys stayed with it until early in the morning,” said Rushing. “It was a great job by all involved.”