LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. — The man who terrorized residents along Brannon Mill Road last week not only has a long legal history, he was wanted as  a fugitive for violating his probation from a 2012 conviction.

Jeffery Sasser, 48, of Boggs Road in London, was taken into custody on Tuesday afternoon after he broke into at least one residence on Brannon Mill Road and pointed a gun at another resident in hopes of gaining entrance to his home.

Sasser was captured after an all-day search of the area.  Residents called the police and reported that an unknown man was walking through the neighborhood.

The report filed by Deputy Josh Scott states that a man matching the description of a suspect was seen along Slate Ridge Road in Lily just before 5 p.m. on Feb. 12. But when the man spotted Scott, he ran away, inciting a foot chase by Scott. The man, identified as Jeffery Sasser, refused to be cuffed and had to be tazed. During the arrest process, a .22 caliber revolver was found inside a holster under Sasser’s coat. He also had a Halloween mask, duct tape, three knives, and rope.

Court records show that an active warrant for Sasser had been issued on Aug. 14 of last year on charges of probation violation. Sasser was on probation for a 2011 charge settled in March 2012 for theft by unlawful taking of an automobile. He was sentenced to three years in prison, with that sentence probated with supervision for three years with Sasser serving 120 days in jail. Conditions of the probation were that Sasser allow the probation officer to visit him, to report to the probation officer, and to pay $399 in restitution. A persistent felony offender charge in that indictment was dismissed as part of the sentence.

However, those charges were just the beginning of Sasser’s legal troubles that date back to 1997. In December of that year, Sasser was sentenced to a one year prison sentence for theft by unlawful taking. That sentence ran at the same time as a second-degree burglary charge that had been amended down from first-degree. Sasser was given a 10-year prison sentence on that charge.

In 2003, Sasser pled guilty to contempt of court and spent 30 days in jail. In 2005, Sasser was indicted by a Laurel grand jury on charges of receiving stolen property over $300. He was given a five-year prison sentence on the felony charge of theft by unlawful taking and received credit for 196 days already served. That sentence ran at the same time as a six-year sentence Sasser received for second-degree burglary.

He was indicted again in 2006 for theft by unlawful taking and third-degree burglary. The burglary charge was amended down and his 12-month sentence for theft by unlawful taking under $300 ran after the six-year sentence.



njohnson@sentinel-echo.com