07/22/2025
Possession of a Loaded Firearm by a Criminal Street Gang Member / Possession of Live Ammunition by a Prohibited Person / Brandishing a Firearm / Warrant Arrest
On Sunday, July 20, 2025, at approximately 5:29 p.m., Exeter Police Department officers responded to a report of a subject brandishing a firearm at a passing vehicle near the intersection of Visalia Road and Belmont Avenue. Upon arrival, officers contacted the victim, who reported that a white male adult had brandished a firearm at him while he was driving.
Officers obtained a suspect description and initiated a search of the surrounding area. At approximately 6:49 p.m., an Exeter officer located a subject matching the description in the 500 block of South Kaweah Avenue. The subject was contacted and identified as 18-year-old Thomas Levi Bailey, a resident of Exeter.
A records check revealed that Bailey was the restrained party in a served criminal protective order and had an active misdemeanor warrant for assault. During a search of his person, officers located a loaded revolver and additional live ammunition.
Bailey was arrested without incident, transported to the Exeter Police Department for processing, and subsequently booked into the Tulare County Pre-Trial Facility on charges of possession of a firearm by a criminal street gang member, possession of live ammunition by a prohibited person, violation of a criminal protective order and his misdemeanor warrant.
