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GRUNDY CENTER -- A Grundy Center man faces a litany of charges after allegedly entering a home uninvited and threatening the occupant with a gun early on Sunday morning.
In a press release issued Tuesday, the GCPD announced the arrest of Austin Gene Harris, 29, for first degree burglary, a Class B felony, going armed with intent, a Class D felony, possession/carrying of dangerous weapons while under the influence, possession of marijuana second offense and open container. Later the same day, a vehicle in the vicinity of where he was arrested was found to be damaged, and he was subsequently charged with second degree criminal mischief, a Class D felony, and reckless use of a firearm.
A criminal complaint alleged that Harris had threatened to assault the individual whose home he entered earlier in the night via text messages -- including sending a picture of a handgun -- and when police searched his vehicle, open containers of alcohol, THC vapes and edibles and loaded firearms were found inside of it. A separate complaint alleged that when he pulled a handgun on the victim, the victim struck him and forced the gun from his hand, and Harris subsequently fled the scene.
The latter set of charges stems from a police officer who heard what he believed to be a gunshot about an hour before Harris arrived at the aforementioned residence.
"Later on in the night we arrested Austin Harris for other charges, including gun charges. While his vehicle was being searched, a deputy found a double barrel shotgun. When the shotgun was cleared it was discovered that both barrels were loaded," the complaint reads. "One barrel had an unshot shell in it, but one barrel had a shell that had already been discharged. Around 1 PM on the same day a call was received from (an individual) saying that his car looked like it had been shot by a shotgun."
The individual who made the call had been parked across the street from Harris's residence, and the officer said the location of the damaged car was consistent with where he had heard the blast coming from earlier in the day. The officer also said the damage itself was consistent with a shotgun blast.
Bail for Harris, who is being held in the Grundy County Jail, has been set at $150,000 cash or surety for the first set of charges and $25,000 for the second set, and he is scheduled to make an initial appearance on both sets of charges on Feb. 19 at 1:30 p.m.