Men with shotguns, sword confront homeowner to get back AR-style rifle, Arkansas cops say

An Arkansas homeowner opened his front door Thursday to find two men with shotguns and a third wielding a samurai sword at his house, police said.

But he was armed with a gun, too.

The three men had gone to the 62-year-old man’s house because they realized an AR-style rifle had gone missing that morning, according a Baxter County Sheriff’s Office news release. They believed the rifle had ended up at the house after it was taken and went to get it back, police said.

When the homeowner opened his door, one of the men was on his porch with a 12-gauge shotgun, police said. Another gunman was by a boat in the driveway, and a third was standing on the street holding a sword, police said.

The homeowner — brandishing a handgun — said he “quickly convinced” the man on the porch to drop his weapon, police said. Then the homeowner somehow disarmed the second gunman, police said. Meanwhile, the sword-wielding suspect sped off in a car.

As cops arrived at the scene, they saw the homeowner standing over the two men lying on the ground. Sheriff’s deputies arrested both suspects.

Video surveillance from a home security system confirmed statements from the homeowner, police said.

Greg Anthony Garreans, 29, and Kip Edward Swadley, 28, were charged with aggravated assault. The man with the sword — identified only as “Alex” — had not been found, police said.

This story was originally published September 20, 2019 at 1:13 PM with the headline "Men with shotguns, sword confront homeowner to get back AR-style rifle, Arkansas cops say."