A Leesburg woman was arrested Saturday morning after allegedly interfering with a firefighter and striking a law enforcement officer. Lake EMS and firefighters had been dispatched to a Washington Avenue residence on two occasions Saturday morning to treat a man who was having a diabetic emergency. When the patient became combative a Lake County sheriff’s deputy was dispatched to the residence. The deputy went to a shed on the property where the man was being treated by EMS. The man had calmed down so that the EMS personnel could treat him.
A fireman told the deputy that they had noticed a gun in a case near the rear porch. As the man had been acting out earlier, the officer removed the pistol from its case to make sure that it was unloaded. He was immediately challenged by 26-year-old Aujanay Thomas who demanded to know what the deputy was doing with the gun. She also told the deputy that the weapon was unloaded. She kept arguing with the deputy as he checked the weapon. He had her step away from where he was standing. He found that the weapon had no rounds in the magazine, but did have one round in the firing chamber. After removing the round from the weapon, he returned it to the case.
Thomas had moved into the shed where the patient had again started to argue with the EMS personnel and the firemen. Thomas began to interfere with the EMS personnel and firemen as they tried to treat the man for his medical problem. At one point, the deputy pulled out his electronic stun gun as it appeared that Thomas was going to physically interfere with treatment according to the arrest report.
When the deputy told Thomas that she was under arrest for interfering with a firefighter, she pulled away from him and then hit him on his left arm. She continued to resist the deputy who was then assisted by another deputy to restrain Thomas.
Thomas was transported to the Lake County Jail where she was booked for the offenses of interfering with a firefighter, resisting an officer with violence, obstruction without violence, and battery to a law enforcement officer. Bond was set at $13,000 which was posted that evening.
