Bay St. Louis man charged with burglary, assault

A Bay St. Louis man is charged with burglarizing a vehicle and firing a weapon at the owner of the vehicle.

28-year-old Rufus Gabriel Charles was charged with 10 counts of burglary, aggravated assault and possession of a controlled substance. He was taken to Hancock County jail and no bond was set.

Police were sent to Seube Street about 6:13 a.m. Saturday in response to a report of a car burglary and shots fired.

Officers learned the suspect, identified as Charles, was caught rummaging through a vehicle by a resident in
their driveway. The resident, who was armed with a firearm, confronted Charles who was also armed. The confrontation resulted in the exchange of gunfire.

Charles, fled and was located on the 800 block of Washington Street, still armed, and taken into custody without incident.

Charles was also found to be in possession of illicit drugs.

The Bay St. Louis Police Department then executed a search warrant in the 600 block of Washington Street at a residence where Charles is living. The search of led to the recovery of numerous stolen items including weapons stolen during other vehicle burglaries not related to this incident.

This investigation is ongoing. The Bay St. Louis Police request that anyone with information regarding this incident contact the Criminal Investigations
Division at (228) 467-9222 or the Hancock County Dispatch Center at (228) 255-9191.