Linton man accused of stealing a handgun

Officers responded last week when they received a report that a convicted felon from Linton had stolen a firearm. The suspect admitted he had the gun and was taken into custody then was in court early this morning.

Shane Kenneth Barnes

Shane Kenneth Barnes, 42, Linton, was arrested by Deputy Jordan Allor of the Greene County Sheriff’s Department last Monday, October 26.

Around 7 p.m. that Monday, a woman called the sheriff’s department and said Barnes had stolen her husband’s handgun and they believed Barnes had the gun at his residence in Linton. She said the gun was a Smith and Wesson .357 in a leather holster. The handgun was thought to have been stolen on Saturday, October 24 but they had just noticed it was missing. She said her husband went to get the gun back but Barnes told him he didn’t have the gun. She also said Barnes was a convicted felon and was not supposed to have a firearm.

Deputy Allor responded to the residence of Barnes in Linton, along with GCSD Deputies Michael Stanley and Cameron Frye and Linton Police Officer John Agan.

Barnes allegedly admitted he did have the gun but said he didn’t steal it. He said the gun, which belonged to a family member, was kept in the man’s truck and he took it to shoot it with his nephew, then had wanted his nephew to take it back. Barnes allegedly said if he had stolen it, he wouldn’t have still had the gun but would have sold it.

Barnes gave the gun and a box of ammunition to the deputies then was taken into custody. He was booked into the Greene County Jail at 9:44 p.m.

When he appeared in Greene Superior Court early this morning, Monday, November 2, he was charged with theft with a prior conviction for either theft or conversion, a Level 6 felony.

His bond was set at $4,000 surety with ten percent cash allowed. As of late Monday, he had not yet posted bond and was still in jail.