The body of a Meigs County deputy who went missing Wednesday night has been found, according to a report from Local 3 News.
Deputy Robert "R.J." Leonard appeared to have inadvertently driven into the Tennessee River near the Hamilton County line shortly after responding to a call Wednesday. The body of a woman the deputy was placing under arrest was found in the back seat, covered in mud, Ninth District Attorney General Russell Johnson said during a news conference Thursday morning. The woman has not been publicly identified.
Tennessee's Ninth Judicial District includes Loudon, Meigs, Morgan and Roane counties.
Leonard's body was found Thursday evening in the river, according to Local 3 News. Meigs County Chief Deputy Brian Malone told the station Leonard's body will be sent to Knoxville and that the investigation into what happened is ongoing.
Leonard's patrol car was found in the water near Blythe Ferry Road during a scan by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, Johnson said during a news conference Thursday morning, streamed by local news channels.
No other bodies were found in the car, and its front windows were down when the car was discovered, he said.
"It's plain to see that he (Leonard) made it out of the car," Hamilton County Sheriff Austin Garrett said during the news conference.
Leonard's phone was pinging from a location near the submerged car, Johnson said. The car was found upside down in the river near the boat ramp, he said.
Leonard lost contact with dispatch and his wife around 10 p.m. Wednesday, officials said. He was likely taking his passenger to the Meigs County Jail, according to the Sheriff's Office.
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A dive team from the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office searched the river using sonar and a remote-controlled vehicle to determine the car found is Leonard's, Garrett said during the news conference. The license plate matched, Johnson said.
"If it is like it seems to be, there's no other explanation of where the deputy would be at this point other than this," Johnson said during the conference.
Before finding the woman's body, Johnson and others said they were "hoping against hope" that she and Leonard would be found safe and out of the water.
Cellphone and radio signals in the area are not strong, officials said.
Leonard responded to a call at 9:48 p.m. after reports of a man and a woman fighting on a bridge over the Tennessee River near Birchwood. Another report indicated there may have been a man jumping in and out of traffic in that area.
Three minutes later, Leonard said he was taking someone into custody and heading to the Meigs County Jail, Johnson said. It appears he may have turned around sometime after that, Johnson said.
At 10:03 p.m., Leonard texted his wife "arrest." Officials initially said Leonard was making his first arrest with the Sheriff's Office but later said that was not true.
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When his wife responded, Leonard's phone did not receive the message, according to Johnson.
Around the same time, he radioed into dispatchers, but his call was hard to understand, Johnson said. Dispatchers believe he said the word "water."
Phone and tracking data from the app Life 360 led responders to the area near the Blythe Ferry Road boat ramp, where officials said several other vehicles have rolled into the water. There is a right curve on the road that can be easy to miss in the dark, Johnson said.
"We're operating under the theory that it was an accident, he missed his turn, he wasn't familiar, he was doing other things that may have caused him to go in the water," Johnson said. "There's skid marks and some scratch marks, too, so there's some indication he was on the brakes at least trying to stop."
Leonard had been on the force in Meigs County for around two months as of Wednesday, Sheriff Jackie Melton said during the news conference.
He was new to the area, having moved from New York, Chief Deputy Brian Malone said at the conference. Leonard and his wife have three children, Malone said.
"It can be a very dangerous spot for folks that aren't local," Meigs County General Sessions Judge Casey Stokes said during the conference.
Recently, another car ran off the landing on Blythe Ferry Road, Stokes said. The driver survived that incident, he said.
Federal and state law enforcement agencies, along with surrounding counties, are assisting Meigs and Hamilton counties in the search.
"Well over 100, maybe 200 people, on the ground here doing the exact same thing," Garrett said during the conference.
Meigs County deputies went to notify the family of the woman they believe was found dead in the car, Malone said. She had reportedly been in a fight with a man, possibly a boyfriend, at the time of the initial call, Johnson said.
Contact Ellen Gerst at egerst@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6319.