'Shots Fired' SWAT Response Montco Incident Leads To Related Arrest

MONTGOMERY TOWNSHIP, PA — Police in Montgomery Township have arrested a man on weapons and drug charges, and law enforcement officials are reportedly saying the same defendant may be a person of interest in a recent incident where SWAT team members were called out to a Montgomery County borough after a report of 'shots fired.'

Arrested was Christopher Gring, 39, of North Wales, on felony charges of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and firearms not to be carried without a license, in addition to misdemeanor counts of possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia, according to court records and media reports.

The criminal docket sheet in the case shows that Gring was arrested mid-last week in Montgomery Township.

The website North Penn Now reported that the arrest stemmed from an incident at the Quality Inn in Montgomery Township, during which police say they encountered a stopped vehicle with a woman screaming inside.

Gring, who was a front-seat passenger in the vehicle, was non-compliant with officers, refused to obey commands and made "unnatural movements" inside the vehicle, according to the story.

Officers subsequently discovered a loaded handgun underneath Gring's seat during a search of the vehicle, according to the report.

Gring is reportedly prohibited by law from owning firearms.

It was unclear whether or not the gun was actually in the possession of Gring or may have belonged to someone else inside the vehicle.

North Penn Now reported that a search of Gring's address showed that it was the same location at which a report of 'shots fired' occurred at a Lansdale home last week.

Patch also previously reported on the Lansdale incident, which subsequently led to a related call for SWAT team assistance in neighboring North Wales Borough.

Lansdale Police previously stated that the 'shots fired' call came in just before six in the morning on July 22 at an address on the unit block of East Third Street, although no injuries were reported at the location.

Witnesses had told officers they saw a black vehicle fleeing from the area of the shooting call and police in nearby Upper Gwynedd Township eventually located the vehicle, which then made its way into North Wales, and county SWAT team members were ultimately called, police had stated last week.

Gring was reportedly one of the persons of interest who were said to be inside the Lansdale home at the time of the 'shots fired' call,' according to the North Penn Now report.

In the most recent incident out of Montgomery Township, Gring was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Albert Augustine last week, who sent Gring to the county jail in lieu of posting bail.

Records show that Gring originally had a preliminary hearing scheduled for Aug. 9 but that the proceeding has since been moved to Aug. 16 before Magisterial District Judge Andrea Hudak Duffy.

Lansdale Police told North Penn Now that while Gring remains a person of interest in the 'shots fired' call from last week, they did not yet have an arrest warrant in the case, and they would be unable to make an arrest outside of their jurisdiction without one.

A further search of court records shows that Gring has been arrested numerous times in other jurisdictions for various drug and other charges.

Patch attempted to reach out to Lansdale police to get independent confirmation of the North Penn Now report regarding Gring's possible connection to the recent incidents in the borough, but police did not immediate respond to our request.