Court records obtained by The Salty Soldier reveal new details about the Christmas Eve killing in Tennessee that led to the arrest of a Fort Bragg soldier months later in North Carolina.
According to an affidavit filed in Roane County General Sessions Court, Spc. Jacob Ryan Corbett Stinnett, 24, told investigators he shot his uncle, Tommy James Cooper, 48, in self-defense during a confrontation on December 24, 2025.
Authorities say the incident began around 9:49 p.m. on Christmas Eve, when Stinnett called 911 reporting that Cooper had attempted to attack him.
Deputies responded to a wooded area near Highway 70 and Fire Tower Road in Rockwood, Tennessee, where they found Cooper dead next to a John Deere tractor with multiple gunshot wounds.
According to the investigative report, Stinnett told officers he was operating a tractor on the property when the confrontation occurred.
After being advised of his Miranda rights, Stinnett told investigators the confrontation began when Cooper jumped from a side-by-side vehicle and charged toward him. Stinnett said that while still seated on the tractor, he drew a handgun from his waistband holster and fired two shots from the hip.
Stinnett told investigators he then jumped off the tractor. According to the affidavit, he said Cooper “slumped,” and that he then fired a final shot, telling investigators, “he slumped and I got him one last good time.”
Stinnett told investigators he believed he fired two shots to Cooper’s chest and one shot to the head during the incident.
However, findings from the autopsy and evidence collected at the scene later raised questions about the self-defense claim.
According to the autopsy referenced in the affidavit, Cooper suffered three gunshot wounds, including one to the right side of the chest, one to the back of the chest, and one to the back of the head.
Investigators also noted in the report that Cooper appeared to have been “slumped” when the final shot was fired.
Those findings, combined with evidence collected at the scene, led investigators to question the initial claim of self-defense.
After reviewing the autopsy results and other investigative findings, agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, working with the Roane County Sheriff’s Office, sought an arrest warrant for Stinnett.
A judge issued the second-degree murder warrant on February 20, nearly two months after the shooting.
Stinnett was arrested three days later on February 23 at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, by agents with the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division.
Editor’s Note:The full court and investigative records referenced in this report are available to subscribers at TheSaltySoldierUncensored.com.
He was initially held in North Carolina before being transferred to Tennessee, where he was booked into the Roane County jail on March 6, according to court records.
A judge set bond at $100,000, with conditions including GPS monitoring and pre-trial supervision.
Stinnett is assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg. The Army has confirmed it is aware of the arrest and is cooperating with investigators.
The case also carries a complicated background involving the victim. District Attorney General Russell Johnson previously confirmed that Cooper had been charged in July 2025 with prohibited weapons violations after bounty hunters reportedly discovered explosive devices on his property.
Investigators in that earlier case recovered items including an inert military rocket launcher and hoax explosive devices.
It remains unclear whether that earlier investigation played any role in the events leading up to Cooper’s death.
Stinnett is scheduled to appear in Roane County court on April 21, 2026 for further proceedings.
As with all criminal cases, the charge against Stinnett is an allegation, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
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