Waffle House suspect is in jail
Nashville manhunt ends 1 mile from shooting site
Travis Reinking, the suspect in a deadly shooting at an Antioch Waffle House, was arrested Monday.
Shortly after 1 p.m., police announced Reinking had been arrested in a wooded area less than 1 mile from the scene of the shooting and close to an elementary school. A tip from a construction worker led police to Reinking, police said, and detectives from the department’s narcotics unit swarmed the area.
Detective Kyle Williams spotted Reinking and took him into custody. The suspect was carrying a loaded silver handgun and flashlight in a black backpack, police said.
Police photos from the scene showed Reinking, 29, being ushered into a car wearing a torn maroon T-shirt with scratches on his exposed shoulders.
Reinking requested a lawyer and refused to give a statement, police spokesman Don Aaron said. He was taken to Nashville General Hospital before being booked at the Davidson County Sheriff ’s Office in Nashville.
Reinking has been charged with four counts of homicide for the deaths of Taurean Sanderlin, 29; Joe Perez, 20; Deebony Groves, 21; and Akilah Dasilva, 23. His capture capped a chaotic search after the shooting at an Antioch Waffle House about 3:25 a.m. Sunday. Reinking had stolen a car before the shooting, police said.
“We are glad to know that our community will receive justice,” Mayor David Briley wrote on Twitter. “The people of Antioch and all of Nashville can breathe a sigh of relief.”
Lydia French said she called 911 Monday afternoon after she saw a man who looked like Reinking emerge from woods looking “shocked” and “disoriented.” French and her construction crew had been working on the Mountain Springs subdivision in Nashville when she spotted Reinking.
French said Reinking noticed when she called 911. He darted behind a nearby school and she lost sight of him.
“When he saw me on the phone, he kept looking, real nervous,” French said. Her hands shook as she told the story to reporters soon after Reinking’s arrest.
“I’ve got kids,” she said. “I worked out here every day last week with him living right here. All day long I kept thinking that could’ve been us.”
Even as more information about the suspect emerged, Aaron said police did not know what motivated the shooting.