Nov. 10—A bounty hunter for a bail bonds company that police said shot a wanted man in the face in Norwich is due in court on Monday to face felony assault and other charges.
Jonathan Muckinhaupt, 29, of Springfield, Mass., was one of five bail enforcement agents that showed up in two vehicles in a Norwich neighborhood on the evening of Sept. 12, dressed in tactical gear and holding pistols, shotguns and tasers, police reports show. The group had learned that their target, a man wanted for skipping out on $290,000 in bonds, would be in the area of Lake Street.
When the wanted man, 27-year-old Jordan Lanphear, arrived in a Toyota Corolla, police said the bounty hunters tried to box Lanphear's car in. Muckinhaupt, who was wearing a black face mask and a silver badge that read "Bail Enforcement Agent," ran up to the Toyota Corolla, yelled "hands, hands, show me your hands....the muzzle of the shotgun approximately three inches from the center of the victim's face," a police report shows.
Police said Muckinhaupt admitted firing his shotgun after Lanphear made a sudden movement.
"Muckinhaupt stated he pulled the trigger on the Remington shotgun because he thought the victim was going to use his vehicle to strike them or was going to use a firearm against them after he had already struck on of their vehicles," the police report states.
Police, however, said the Toyota Corolla "does not appear to strike the GMC Sierra as it was originally reported to police." Police said the Corolla surged forward after the driver was shot in the face, nearly striking one of the other bail enforcement agents and then struck one of the bail enforcement vehicles as he made his getaway.
In an interview with police, Lanphear's girlfriend, Kathleen Tourangeau, said she was in the car at the time of the shooting and claims the men never identified themselves before firing. Lanphear, as they drove away said, "I think he broke my jaw," and they shot me in the face, I have a hole in my face."
Muckinhaupt fired three additional rounds from his shotgun at the Toyota Corolla and told police he was under the impression the Corolla hit one of the the bail enforcement officers while speeding off.
Police described the bean bag rounds used by Muckinhaupt as nylon bags loaded with lead shot that fit in a normal shotgun. The rounds are not to be shot at a victim's head, face, neck or spinal area because they can cause serious injury to death and can only be used if "deadly force is justified," Norwich police Detective Peter Karasuk wrote in his report.