KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — It was an eventful week in East Tennessee. Here's what you missed.
Story 1
"Man dead after incident at Rod Run event"
One person is dead after an incident on the Parkway in Pigeon Forge. Since the incident, the Pigeon Forge Police Department has identified the man who died.
Authorities said 31-year-old Jeremy Hanes Jr. died after a crash on Thursday evening. PFPD said a truck had stopped at a red light and a passenger opened the door. Hanes Jr. was driving north on the Parkway on an electric scooter, in the area between the white line and the sidewalk, before crashing into the door.
Story 2
"Pellissippi State faculty member loses job after creating, promoting adult-oriented OnlyFans content"
People in East Tennessee recently reached out to WBIR regarding a faculty member at Pellissippi State Community College creating and promoting his own adult content.
WBIR learned the faculty member had a sexually explicit OnlyFans account. A parent alerted 10News that students had found the faculty member's account and were disturbed at seeing images of him naked.
Community members also sent screenshots of an X account, formally known as Twitter, and an OnlyFans account that appears to be connected to the faculty member. The author of the OnlyFans account played off being a teacher and referred to subscribers as his students.
Story 3
"PFPD: 36 people arrested during Rod Run"
Pigeon Forge's Rod Run event was held at the LeConte Events Center over the weekend and the Pigeon Forge Police Department has since released a statistical report.
The released report covers incidents from Thursday, April 18 at 7 a.m. to Sunday, April 21 at 4 p.m.
PFPD said officers responded to 1,151 calls for service. There were also 36 arrests made resulting in 48 charges. PFPD said officers gave 623 citations and 283 warnings.
Story 4
"KPD identifies involved officer from shooting at Fountain City gas station"
The Knoxville Police Department has identified the involved officer in the police shooting that happened at the Exxon gas station in Fountain City on Wednesday, April 17 as Officer Seth Beeler.
Beeler graduated from the KPD recruit academy in February 2022 and is currently assigned to the Field Operations East District. Per standard protocol, he was been placed on routine, administrative leave, KPD said.
Beeler's personnel file revealed he was placed on leave for five working days beginning on April 17. No other disciplinary actions were noted in the file.
Story 5
"KPD: Student detained after threatening another student, Fulton High placed on brief lockdown"
Fulton High School was put on a brief lockdown Tuesday morning after a student from the school was threatened, according to the Knoxville Police Department.
At around 11:30 a.m., KPD said its School Resource Officers responded to Fulton High after a 16-year-old reportedly called the school and threatened to harm a student due to a personal conflict.
The suspect who made the threat was identified and detained by officers near the school's campus.
The 16-year-old has since been charged with aggravated criminal trespass, harassment and carrying weapons on school property, KPD said.