Local Places 911 Call; Leads To Capture Of Shooting Suspect

A Fentress County resident being called a hero for placing a 911 call that led to the capture of the Nashville Waffle House shooting suspect.

Lydia French and her husband Bryan working at a construction site Monday when they spotted 29-year-old Travis Reinking walking through a field not far from the shooting scene and the suspect’s apartment complex.

“He was probably 50 to 100 yards from us and close enough that we could see it was him,” French said. “I called 911 back and told them it was him. It wasn’t long after that when everybody showed up.”

Reinking would be arrested about 10 minutes later by Metro Nashville Police.

French said she receiveded multiple messages and phone calls from unknown individuals Tuesday, calling her a hero and thanking her for making the call to 911.

“Everybody is calling me a hero, but I need to make it clear that I’m not a hero. I just did what anyone else would have done if they were in my situation,” French said.

French was back on the construction site today and said there’s a sigh of relief at the apartment complex where Reinking lived.

“There’s people actually out walking around this morning and it’s a really good feeling knowing that we were able to help the community do this,” French said. “We are not the hero. James Shaw is the hero for taking the weapon away from him because it could have been way worse if he had not.”

A judge revoked Reinking’s $2 million bond this morning.