The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office arrested a man Sunday evening, saying he barricaded himself inside a Soddy-Daisy home with his child and threatened to kill his neighbors and police.
Deputies responded to a call from a man mowing the lawn at a nearby day care center who told police he was approached by a barefoot woman screaming and crying, claiming her boyfriend was trying to kill her and their child, according to a sworn arrest affidavit from the Sheriff's Office.
"A shoeless female ran up to him, crying and yelling for help," the affidavit said.
Tommie Garth, who is a contractor for the city, called Hamilton County emergency 911 and reported the incident, according to the affidavit.
"I saw her crying, and she told me her baby daddy was looking for them to kill them," Garth told the Chattanooga Times Free Press in a telephone interview Monday.
Garth said he didn't believe the victim at first but changed his mind when she told him to call 911.
Garth said he was worried for the victim as she ran toward a wooded area near the day care center.
"That's when I called 911, and the cops, about five or six of them were there within like five minutes," he said.
The boyfriend was later identified by deputies as Christopher Scott Middleton, 51, of Soddy-Daisy.
(READ MORE: Aide to Chattanooga man with ALS says attack happened after caregiver was fired)
Deputies arrived at the day care at 4:30 p.m. and followed the screaming and crying sounds to a nearby residence at the 9000 block of Lovell Road, where they located the woman on a backyard deck, according to the affidavit.
"(The female and her child) were lying on the deck, but officers intervened," the affidavit said. "But Chris quickly picked up (the child) and ran into the house. He locked all of the doors."
The incident began when the couple and two of their neighbors were having drinks on the porch and Middleton began to argue, according to the affidavit.
Middleton accused his girlfriend of having an affair with their neighbor, punched her in the head, grabbed the child and locked himself in the house, the document said. Soon after, he began to threaten to kill everyone, the affidavit said.
(READ MORE: Hamilton County Sheriff's Office arrests two men, seizes drugs, weapons)
As his neighbor tried to reason with him, Middleton screamed from inside the house, "I'm going to kill you," the affidavit said. The neighbor managed to take a rifle away from Middleton when he opened the door for a moment before slamming it shut again, according to the affidavit.
Middleton's girlfriend told deputies that "Chris recently shot at her, but missed," and she didn't report the incident, according to the affidavit.
Officers from the Soddy-Daisy Police Department as well as deputies from the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office heard Middleton threaten to kill everyone as well as shoot police, the report said. They also heard the child crying throughout the incident, according to the affidavit.
During negotiations, a deputy received a call of a possible home invasion at a nearby residence. When authorities arrived, a woman said Middleton had tried to break into her house but ran away after assaulting her.
At 7:30 p.m., deputies and officers were able to gain entry into the residence and arrest Middleton, who resisted them as they put him in the patrol car, the affidavit said. The child was reunited with its mother.
"Police called me and thanked me for calling them, and told me he broke into another house," Garth said, adding that it's the first time something like this had happened to him in Soddy-Daisy.
Two shotguns, one rifle and one revolver were seized from the residence, the affidavit said.
(READ MORE: Ooltewah man to serve 20 years for raping Uber driver)
Middleton has been charged by deputies with one count of aggravated burglary, one count of assault, one count of aggravated kidnapping, one count of aggravated child abuse, one count of domestic assault, one count of aggravated assault, one count of possession of a firearm during a felony and one count of resisting arrest.
Middleton is being held at the Silverdale Detention Center on a bond of $290,000 for all charges, with a public defender to be assigned to him during his first court appearance. He is scheduled to appear before Hamilton County General Sessions Court Judge Christine M. Sell on Sept. 6.
Contact La Shawn Pagán at lpagan@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6476. Follow her on Twitter @LaShawnPagan.