South Georgia Officers Taze Suspected Prowler After Threatening Officers With Knife

VALDOSTA, GA- A 63-year-old man has been arrested after an incident in Valdosta last week that started off as a call of a suspected prowler, but later escalated to a foot chase and a threat to officers. The actions resulted in officers having to use a taser to bring the suspect into custody.

Valdosta police say on Thursday, January 22, 2026, at 8:50 p.m., Valdosta E911 received a call from a female, reporting that an unknown male was continuing to walk around the outside of her residence. The caller advised 911 operators that the subject appeared to have something in their hand and was able to provide a detailed description to the operator.

Valdosta officers responded to the scene and upon their arrival they observed a male subject matching the description provided flee into a wooded area near the callers home. Officers gave chase and issued verbal commands for the male subject to stop. The fleeing male failed to yield to officers and continued to flee through the wooded area. Officers note that they observed something in the male subjects hand and he advised officers it was a knife and the subject threatened officers with bodily harm and told them to stay away from him according to information released by Valdosta Police.

During the course of the foot pursuit, the male suspect fell. As officers made their way to the male they observed he was still holding the knife and attempting to get up. One of the officers discharged his taser which prevented the subject from getting up. The officers took the subject into custody. Police were able to recover the knife which has been described as having a five-inch blade.

The suspect has been identified as 63-year-old Michael Thompkins. He was taken to South Georgia Medical Center after complaining of medical problems and was later transported to the Lowndes County Jail. Thompkins has been charged with terroristic threats and acts, obstruction of an officer, and loitering and prowling.

All Suspects Are Presumed Innocent Until Proven Guilty In A Court Of Law!

About the Author

Alton Mitchell

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Alton Mitchell is a career journalist, who currently resides in the Atlanta, Georgia area. He began his journalistic writing career while attending middle school and continued on through high school earning top honors by becoming his high school newspapers Editor in Chief. During his senior year of high school Mitchell's work received community recognition following an article that helped to save a local elementary school from closure. He would later go on to college where he earned degrees in Political Science and English. Following his graduation from college Mitchell would take on several reporting jobs at smaller publications and worked in roles ranging from a freelance journalist to editorial related roles. His work was recognized and received Press Association Awards in 2021. Writing is a passion and a love for Mitchell and he hopes to enlighten the community he serves through his works with A Mitchell Media LLC.

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