The man accused of opening fire on Easter Sunday at a restaurant in the Salemtown neighborhood of Nashville was arrested in Kentucky late Tuesday night, according to the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD).
Anton Rucker, 46, was arrested in Princeton, Kentucky by MNPD TITANS (The Investigative Team Addressing Neighborhood Shootings) detectives, who located the suspected gunman in a residence.
BREAKING: Anton Rucker is in custody in Princeton, KY. MNPD TITANS (The Investigative Team Addressing Neighborhood Shootings) detectives located him there in a residence. He came out & surrendered without incident. Rucker is being jailed in KY on a fugitive from justice warrant.
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) April 3, 2024
Rucker came out from the residence and surrendered to officers without incident, according to MNPD.
The suspected gunman is currently being held in the Caldwell County Jail on a fugitive from justice warrant.
Rucker is accused of killing one man – who has since been identified as 33-year old Allen Beachem – and injuring multiple others as a result of opening fire inside Roasted, the restaurant in Salemtown.
Roasted has since announced it will be closed until further notice as a result of the incident.
“As our team continues to process and heal we will be closed until further notice. We appreciate your continued thoughts and prayers for everyone involved in this tragic incident,” the restaurant wrote in a Facebook post on Tuesday.
Rucker, a convicted felon, has a lengthy criminal history and was out on a $50,000 bond at the time he allegedly committed Sunday’s crime.
MNPD said Rucker has aggravated assault convictions in Nashville and was arrested in Murfreesboro on felony drug charges last October and on aggravated assault and gun charges last August.
Further investigation by The Tennessee Star has revealed Rucker has a criminal history in Davidson County going back to 1995, as he has been convicted of a number of felonies, including illegal drug possession, two counts of evidence-tampering, evading arrest, and five counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Shortly after Sunday’s shooting, Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell blamed the incident on “gun violence,” saying, “We must continue doing everything in our power at the local level to limit the likelihood and impact of gun violence.”
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Photo “Anton Rucker” and “Caldwell County Jail” by Caldwell County Jail.
