John Willoughby: reporter2@greenepublishing.com
Madison County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) deputies arrested a Greenville man on Friday, Sept. 6, after reports of shots fired and witness statements led investigators to a suspect.
According to a report by Major David Harper of the MCSO, at approximately 2:20 p.m., deputies were dispatched to H&R Grocery, located at 1809 SW Main St., in Greenville, in response to gunshots fired from a vehicle in the direction of a crowd of people gathered in the parking lot.
Upon arrival, deputies discovered that no one was hit or injured by the gunshots. Several witnesses reported that a gold car stopped in front of the lot, driven by a suspect identified as Frankie McClamma. Witnesses stated that McClamma pointed a shotgun out of the window in the direction of the crowd and was yelling at someone in the crowd, but did not fire the gun at that time. McClamma allegedly drove away, but returned a short time later and fired multiple shots from the vehicle in the direction of the crowd as he drove by.
The report continues to state that deputies located 45-year-old Franklin McClamma at his Greenville residence on West U.S. Hwy. 90. McClamma stated that he was driving by the store and that he was shot at. Deputies located an abandoned vehicle on the side of U.S. 90, east of McClamma’s residence, that matched the description provided by witnesses. The vehicle had a flat front tire. Deputies observed several shotgun shells, including spent rounds scattered throughout the vehicle.
During the investigation, McClamma admitted that the vehicle was the same vehicle he was driving, however, it ran out of gas and the flat tire was caused by gunshots directed at him. McClamma’s self-identified girlfriend told deputies that McClamma did have a shotgun when he left the residence but did not have the shotgun when he returned.
Deputies searched the residence and vehicle, however, a shotgun was not located. Deputies and MCSO investigators began back-tracking all possible routes from the residence to H&R Grocery and were able to locate a shotgun near a culvert on the side of Tram Road. The shot gun was loaded with the same type of ammunition found inside the abandoned car, according to MCSO.
Major David Harper added that further investigation revealed that the shotgun had been reported stolen in 1999 from Jefferson County. There were no witnesses to corroborate McClamma's claim of being shot at and the cause of the flat tire on McClamma's vehicle could not be confirmed.
McClamma was arrested without further incident and charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, discharging a firearm in public, aggravated assault (use of a weapon) and improper exhibition of a firearm.
