1 of 2 | James Jackson Conn, 22, was arrested Monday morning in connection to the death of deputy Savanna Puckett on Sunday. Photo courtesy of Tennessee Bureau of Investigation
Jan. 24 (UPI) -- Authorities in Tennessee said Monday that they have arrested a 22-year-old man for the death of a deputy who was found shot inside her burning home over the weekend.
James Jackson Conn, 22, of Smyrna, Tenn., which is about 24 miles southeast of Nashville, was detained Monday morning at his home following an hours-long standoff with police that was brought to an end by SWAT officers who entered the residence to perform the arrest, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said in a statement.
He has been charged with first-degree murder and one count of aggravated arson in connection to the death of 22-year-old Robertson County deputy Savanna Puckett.
The sheriff's office said in a statement that the four-year veteran of the sheriff's office was pronounced dead Sunday night in her home.
A deputy was sent to her residence after she failed to show up for her 5 p.m. shift to find her Springfield residence engulfed in flames, authorities said.
The deputy attempted to enter the home but was unable to due to the fire, which was eventually extinguished by the fire department.
Once able to enter the home, Puckett was found dead with a gunshot wound.
"Words cannot express the sadness and grief that Savanna's family and her sheriff's office family are facing right now," Sheriff Michael Van Dyke said. "This is a tragedy that we are processing minute by minute."
Authorities said without elaborating that agents investigating the crime had received information that pointed them toward Conn, who was an acquaintance of Puckett.
On Monday, Puckett's body was escorted from the medical examiner's office in Nashville to the Springfield Memorial Gardens.
Conn was booked into the Robertson County Jail where he was being held Monday night without bond.
