On Christmas morning, December 25, 2025, at approximately 5:30 a.m., Detective Sergeant Tim Vandever was heading to work on 4th Street in Crossville when he observed a vehicle parked parallel to the sidewalk in front of the closed La Michoacana ice cream shop near the Dollar General Market at the intersection with Miller Avenue. The occupants appeared to notice his approach and began pulling away; as he passed, both individuals—hoods pulled up, making their gender unclear—averted their gaze.

Given the early hour, the holiday, and the businesses being closed, this struck him as suspicious, possibly indicating an attempt to break into the premises. He turned around to follow, but the vehicle accelerated away on Miller Avenue toward town. Vandever caught up and noted evasive lane changes as he attempted to stay behind it while running the license plate. An initial mismatch occurred due to a dispatch error on a letter, but a corrected check returned the vehicle to a known individual from prior encounters.

The vehicle turned left onto West Avenue and pulled into a Speedway gas station, where the driver stopped at a pump, exited quickly, and began walking away. Vandever pulled in behind, called the driver back, and explained his reasonable suspicion regarding their presence at a closed business that early on Christmas. The driver claimed he had stopped only to answer a cell phone call. After confirming the driver had a valid license and no warrants, Vandever asked about the passenger.

The driver hesitated but permitted him to speak with the individual. The passenger was uncooperative from the start, insisting the stop concerned only the driver and refusing to provide identification. After repeated requests, he gave a first name of Gauge and a last name of Houston but stalled when asked for a date of birth. Vandever, sensing deception from his demeanor and reactions, confronted him; the passenger then admitted his first name was Collin but again refused the last name.

When the passenger suddenly reached toward the dark floorboard area, Vandever—in plain clothes and without his flashlight—drew his pistol for safety, activated its mounted light to monitor the hands, and ordered him out of the vehicle. He directed the individual to the rear trunk area, holstered his weapon after placing his radio down, and stated he was only being detained, not arrested. At that point, the passenger broke free from Vandever’s grip and fled on foot across Elmore Road, through the Citgo parking lot, and into dimly lit areas near the Rural King parking lot.

Vandever briefly pursued but stopped to order the driver to the ground after seeing him move toward the open passenger door, uncertain what might be in the floorboard. Backup officers from city and county agencies responded and searched the area but did not locate the fleeing suspect. Based on the description provided—including build and visible neck and arm tattoos—and the partial name Collin, a county deputy identified the individual as Collin Kemmer via Facebook and confirmed the identity via the Tennessee Criminal Justice Portal driver’s license photo.

Vandever obtained warrants for criminal impersonation and evading arrest; he also learned of an active warrant in Roane County for violation of probation. The incident was reported on January 6, 2026, and approved shortly thereafter.