A Stuart man was charged following a call of an armed man at a local business, according to Patrick County Sheriff Dan Smith.
Jacob Lee Bowman, 18, was charged with felony possession of a sawed-off shotgun, Smith said in a release Monday.
The incident began unfolding around 12:30 p.m. Monday, when employees at Results Call Center on Progress Drive called 911 and reported that a man armed with a gun was pacing back and forth in the parking lot in front of the business, the release stated.
Results employees told a dispatcher that employees were locked inside the building as a precautionary measure.
Smith, along with Deputy Jason Kruse and Linda Martin, investigator, were the first to arrive on the scene around 12:36 p.m., according to the release.
The man, who was described as wearing a red sweat suit, was located, according to Smith.
When located, the man allegedly “was holding a shotgun in his right hand,” but complied with orders to drop the weapon, Smith said.
The shotgun barrel had been cut off, measuring only 12 inches in length, Smith said.
Both state and federal law prohibit the manufacture and/or possession of a shotgun with less than an 18-inch barrel, according to the sheriff.
“This could have ended very badly in many ways, I am grateful he complied with our commands,” Smith said.
Bowman is being held in the Patrick County Jail on a $5,000 secured bond.
