CLENDENIN, WV(LOOTPRESS) – Deputies with the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office and Troopers with the West Virginia State Police became locked in a standoff with a Kanawha County gunman for over three hours on Tuesday.
The Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office reports that, on the evening of Tuesday, February 13, 2024, Deputies with the KCSO and West Virginia State Police Troopers responded to a residence in the 9000 block of Wills Creek Road following a 911 call from a utility worker.
The caller stated that his crew had been working on fiber lines when they heard gunshots and believed that the shots were being fired at them. The 911 call came in just after 7:00 p.m., and shots were continuously being fired for approximately 30 minutes.
Upon their arrival at the scene, Kanawha County Deputies learned that the suspect – identified as Aaron Grindstaff, 31, of Clendenin – had been accused of a similar act against utility workers in 2021.
Deputies negotiated with Grindstaff for approximately 3 ½ hours in an attempt to resolve the incident peacefully. At approximately 11:22 p.m., Grindstaff exited the rear of his residence and was taken into custody by law enforcement.
Approximately 19 firearms and significant amounts of ammunition were collected as evidence from the scene.
One Deputy sustained an injury during the incident and would be transported to CAMC General Hospital to received treatment for non-life-threatening injuries. He would later be released.
Grindstaff has been charged with one felony count of wanton endangerment with a firearm and was arraigned by a Kanawha County Magistrate Wednesday morning, before being placed in South-Central Regional Jail on a $200,000 bond.