Muscatine Police, assisted by the Muscatine Special Operations and Response Team (MSORT), successfully arrested a 26-year-old male without incident Sunday evening.
On Sunday, October 8, 2023, the Muscatine Police Department began an investigation into the actions of a person identified as Austin Thomas Brown (DOB/02-19-1997), a 26-year-old adult male. The initial responding officer determined that Austin Brown had an active warrant for his arrest issued by the Iowa Department of Corrections for Escape from a Residential Facility. In addition to the warrant, officers became concerned that Austin Brown was currently in the City of Muscatine, and was likely armed and dangerous.
Officers with the Muscatine Police Department Patrol Division were able to determine the whereabouts of Austin Brown inside an apartment, but were unable to immediately take him into custody. The Muscatine Special Operations and Response Team (MSORT) was activated to resolve the situation and take the wanted person into custody.
Just before 7:00 p.m., Austin Brown was located at 401 West 3rd Street and placed under arrest without incident. A search of the apartment, following the arrest, revealed the location of two loaded firearms, one with a damaged serial number. A stolen vehicle was also recovered from the scene that Austin Brown was believed to have used.
On Monday, October 9, 2023, Austin Thomas Brown was charged with two counts of Felon in Possession of a Firearm (Class D Felony), Trafficking Stolen Weapons (Class D Felony), Theft 2nd Degree (Class D Felony), Theft 5th Degree (simple misdemeanor) and Fraudulent Practices (simple misdemeanor).
Anyone with additional information on this incident, please reach out to Detective Casey Jensen at (563) 263–9922.
Austin Brown is considered innocent until proven guilty.