The Adams County Sheriff’s Office carried out a saturation patrol on Wednesday evening in Natchez as part of Operation Safe Neighborhoods, a recently announced initiative.
Adams County Sheriff’s deputies will team up with Natchez Police officers to increase patrolling in certain areas of Natchez. This collaborative effort aims to reduce the occurrence of shootings and violent crime within the city.
Sheriff Travis Patten stated in a press release on Thursday morning that deputies conducted multiple traffic stops in high crime areas during the saturation. They encountered several individuals carrying handguns and even an assault rifle.
According to the spokesperson, law enforcement officers successfully tracked down three individuals who were wanted by both the Natchez Police Department and the Adams County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies engaged in a foot chase that spanned multiple blocks in the Daisy Street vicinity. Ultimately, they apprehended Barrney Hawkins, who was discovered concealed beneath a house on Grant Street. Hawkins was allegedly in possession of both cocaine and crack cocaine.
In a recent incident, Hawkins, a convicted arsonist on probation from Adams County Circuit Court, found himself in trouble again. He was apprehended and faced charges of possessing cocaine and crack cocaine with the intention to distribute within close proximity of a school zone. Additionally, he was charged with resisting arrest.
Deputies spotted Sam Mason standing in front of a house on Oak Street and promptly apprehended him following a brief altercation.
According to Patten, Mason has been evading law enforcement since 2021 when warrants were issued for his arrest for being an accessory after the fact in a drive-by shooting. At the residence, deputies also detained one of his family members for disorderly conduct.
