Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero and Police Chief David Rausch today named Recruit Connor Cox the June Employee of the Month for the Knoxville Police Department.  Recruit Cox has been with KPD since November 2015. 

On June 2, 2016, at approximately 11:44 a.m., officers responded to a suspicious person call in the 500 block of West Jackson Avenue.  Callers indicated two males had been sitting in a car acting suspicious.  The males were observed placing something resembling large squares wrapped in aluminum foil under barrels.  The males then left the area in their vehicle but not before witnesses were able to take pictures of the suspects and their vehicle.  

Due to the unusual nature of the call the department’s Explosive Ordinance Detail Unit (EOD) responded to the scene.  While EOD officers were working to determine what had been placed under the barrels, the description of the suspects and their vehicle was broadcast to all units in the area.  KPD Recruit Cox was performing his assigned parking enforcement duties when he located the suspect’s vehicle parked on the Gay Street viaduct with the suspects still inside the vehicle.  

Chief Rausch said, “Recruit Cox exercised good judgement by maintaining a safe distance from the suspects and calling for assistance from officers in the area.”

Both suspects were detained for questioning. During the investigation officers discovered one of the male suspects had four extraditable vandalism warrants out of Ohio.  The hidden items were discovered to be blocks of compressed aluminum.  The blocks were hidden until they could retrieve the items later.  

Chief Rausch said, “Recruit Cox did an excellent job in not only remembering the details of the suspects and their vehicle, but in remaining vigilant and observant while carrying out his normal duties.  Recruit Cox’s sound judgement and employment of proper police training tactics led to the capture of a man wanted by the State of Ohio on extraditable warrants.”