Sheriff: Two arrested, one with bulletproof vest, after guard chases burglary suspects

Two Anderson County men, one wearing a bulletproof vest, were arrested Sunday after a security guard chased two burglary suspects from Southern Coal Co. on Airbase Lane in Briceville, authorities said.

The two men—Louis Edward Goodman, 24, of Oak Ridge, and Christopher Houston Harness, 24, of Briceville—fled into the woods after they were confronted, the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department said in a Monday morning press release.

Deputies responded to the burglary-in-progress report and located the two suspects after a search, authorities said. Goodman and Harness were taken into custody and charged with several offenses related to the burglary: burglary, felony property theft, and criminal trespassing. Goodman was also charged with the unlawful use of body armor “as he was wearing a bulletproof vest at the time of the offenses,” Chief Deputy Mark Lucas said. Harness was also charged with the possession of burglary tools.

Both are currently being held in the Anderson County Detention Facility in Clinton with bonds pending their arraignments, Lucas said.

More information will be added as it becomes available.