Sgt. Dane Duke –
On 11/10/2023 at approximately 3:41AM deputies responded to a report of a suspicious person in the
300 blk of 5 th St in Elizabethtown, IN. Deputies learned that a male suspect had approached the caller in
the driveway of their residence. During this encounter, the male suspect, later identified as Joshua
Woodruff 46 of Elizabethtown, displayed a handgun and demanded the victim open the trunk of their
vehicle. Woodruff then left the victim’s home and walked to his residence a short distance away.
Deputies later learned that Woodruff apparently believed that the victim had stolen from him and that
the items were in the trunk.
While deputies were investigating the incident, Woodruff exited his home and began yelling at the
deputies. Woodruff was taken into custody after which a search warrant was granted for his residence.
During the search of the home, deputies seized seven firearms, an unspecified amount of
methamphetamine and narcotics paraphernalia. As a result of the items found in the residence, the
other homeowner, later identified as Nicole Woodruff 38 of Elizabethtown, was arrested.
Joshua Woodruff was booked into the Bartholomew County Jail on allegations involving Intimidation with a Deadly Weapon level 5 Felony, Possession of Methamphetamine level 4 Felony and Possession of
Paraphernalia C – Mis. He remains in custody at this time.
Nicole Woodruff was booked into the Bartholomew County Jail on allegations involving Possession of
Methamphetamine level 4 Felony and Possession of Paraphernalia C – Misdemeanor. She has since been released.
This is a preliminary investigation. All persons are innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.