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Friday, October 30, 2026Oct 30

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TBI probes exchange of gunfire between McMinn County deputies, suspect

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The TBI is investigating an incident in McMinn County, Tennessee, in which deputies and a suspect exchanged gunfire, leading to a two-hour standoff Monday night.

The incident began around 8:30 p.m. Monday on County Road 67, according to Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokesman Josh DeVine.

McMinn County Sheriff Joe Guy said there had been a report that a man, identified as 37-year-old Nicholas Boyd Nunley, shot at a relative while stealing a car in Riceville on state Highway 39 West.

“A few minutes later deputies made contact with the suspect, Nick Nunley, parked on County Road 73,” Guy said in a Facebook post. “As deputies drove up, Nunley pointed a handgun at them and sped away.”

After a short vehicle pursuit, Nunley drove off into a field and fled from his vehicle, and as officers continued on foot Nunley fired several shots at the deputies, Guy said. Two of the deputies returned fire, he said.