Officer’s badge, ID stolen from vehicle

JONESBORO — Even the police found themselves victims in a rash of vehicle break-ins in Jonesboro last week.

A Jonesboro police officer reported Saturday afternoon that his vehicle was broken into and his police badge and ID were stolen in the 3100 block of Southwest Drive.

Officer Michael Starnes told officers that the driver’s side window was broken to gain access to his wallet containing credit and debit cards as well as his badge and ID.

A 61-year-old Bono resident reported Friday afternoon that a 9 mm Smith & Wesson handgun was stolen from his truck in the 300 block of Craighead Road 130. The gun is valued at $400. A 38-year-old Jonesboro woman told police Saturday evening that her residence was broken into in the 3100 block of Race Street and items were taken. Stolen were a 9 mm Springfield pistol valued at $500 and $1,000 in cash.

A 51-year-old Paragould woman and a 21-year-old Jonesboro man reported Saturday afternoon that their vehicles were entered at their workplace, Holiday South Wind Heights, 2305 Bernard St., and items were taken. Stolen were credit and gift cards totaling almost $2,800.

Two employees of St.

Bernards Medical Center reported Saturday afternoon that their vehicles were broken into in the parking lot, 225 E. Jackson St. Stolen were debit and credit cards, checks, a Social Security card and a driver’s license.

A 34-year-old Jonesboro woman told police on Saturday morning that someone stole her vehicle from the 9100 block of Willow Creek Lane. The 2016 Nissan Versa is valued at $8,000.

A 70-year-old Michigan woman told police Friday morning that someone stole her catalytic converter at the 1700 block of Links Circle. The converter is valued at $1,200.

$1,019.82.

A 22-year-old Jonesboro woman told police Sunday afternoon that someone entered her vehicle in the 1800 block of East Johnson Avenue and stole her wallet containing credit and debit cards and gift cards.

A 72-year-old Jonesboro man told police Monday morning that someone entered his vehicle in the 1800 block of East Johnson Avenue and stole items.

Taken were a .380-caliber gun valued at $500, $1,000 in cash, jewelry with a total valued of $7,300, a gun holster valued at $45 and a GPS device valued at $600. ***

SEARCY — Two Searcy men have officially been charged with internet stalking of a child for an incident that reportedly started when one of them handed a note with a phone number on it to a teenager near Bald Knob public schools.

Warrants were issued last week for Cody Ray King, 26, and George Allen King Jr., 52, on the class B felony charge at the request of the 17th Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. Both are scheduled to appear in White County Circuit Court on Tuesday morning for plea and arraignment. Neither was in custody in White County on Monday.

According to the affidavit written by Sgt. Brandon Brown of the Bald Knob Police Department, the teen’s father reported April 16 that his son had been “approached by an older White male who passed him a note.” The handwritten note included the phone number and reportedly said, “Hey sexy. Let’s have some fun.”

Video footage from the Bald Knob School District showed a gray vehicle passing through the intersection of Brown and Hickory streets three times, twice continuing on straight toward the red brick gym. The third time, a passenger got out and “approached the juvenile.”

The passenger was identified as Cody King, while the phone number on the note was “an 86 percent” match to George King’s.

An officer started a text conversation using the phone number, portraying himself to be a juvenile.

The person responding reportedly acknowledged that he believed he was communicating with a 14-year-old and asked him to send an unclothed “full body picture” by text. The conversation reportedly lasted seven hours, during which time, King “was trying to arrange a meeting with the undercover so they could perform ‘oral sex’ on each other.” (The affidavit does not clarify to which King it is referring.)

“Several attempts were made with the whereabouts the two individuals wanted to meet but Mr. King never went through with any of the proposed plans,” Brown wrote.

Officers found the vehicle in the video at the Holiday Inn Express in Searcy “during the time of the conversation,” went to the hotel and were told by the front desk that George King had checked into a room.

However, no one was in the room when officers “attempted to make contact.”

“The officers went back to the meeting point,” Brown wrote, but “communication with the suspect was cut off via the suspect a short time later.”

The next day, Bald Knob police requested a warrant allowing it to place a GPS tracker on the vehicle, and it was signed by White County District Judge Mark Derrick. However, while officers were “attempting to equip the device” to the vehicle, they saw another vehicle with a license plate “registered to George King” and decided not to place the tracker.

Instead, they made contact with Cody King when room service knocked and he answered the door to the room checked into by George King. Cody King was detained, while George King was also in the room and was mirandized, according to the affidavit, before being detained after telling officers that they both “had sent messages.”

At the White County Sheriff’s Office, George King reportedly said he had “sent the messages to the

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suspected juvenile.” Cody King reportedly said he had “simply passed the note and knew of the messages.” Also set to appear in White County Circuit Court on Tuesday is Tristian Delane Tims, 25. A warrant was issued last month for Tims on two counts of class D felony sexual assault in the fourth degree.

Tims remained in the White County Detention Center, which was given as his address, on Monday. He is accused of having “sexual contact and deviate sexual activity” with a juvenile “on more than one occasion.”

A witness reportedly was interviewed April 15 at the White County Sheriff’s Office and said that Tims “confessed to engaging in the sexual acts because he was ‘in love’ with” the juvenile. Screenshots of messages from Tims also showed him admitting to the sexual acts and telling the juvenile “he loved her, and no man-made law would ‘lock him away’ for it,” Detective Cpl. Heather Meadows wrote in the affidavit.

On April 18, Tims reportedly was interviewed at the sheriff’s office and admitted to the “deviate sexual activity” on more than one occasion, saying “he had tracked her location recently via SnapChat mapping and talked her into sneaking out to meet him again.” ***

JONESBORO — Authorities are still continuing their investigation into the discovery of two pipe bombs in a vehicle along Highway 141 near the Greene/Craighead County line.

Greene and Craighead County authorities responded to Highway 141 around 7:30 p.m. June 30 in connection to a report about a stolen vehicle.

As deputies approached the vehicle, they found an eight-inch pipe bomb and a four-inch pipe bomb inside the vehicle during a search.

Officials said both bombs were active and that the bombs were taken to the Arkansas State Police lab for analysis to determine their components.

Greene County Sheriff Steve Franks said this week the pipe bomb case was still under investigation and there was nothing new at this time.

Typically, cases like this take time to investigate due to authorities having to look into several factors including everything from fingerprints to what was inside the bombs.

A woman, Tasia Tyler, 28, of Beech Grove, was taken into custody in on suspicion of unauthorized use of a vehicle in the case. Tyler also faces a felony failure to appear charge and a $7,500 bond was set July 1 for her in that case.

***

CONWAY — Over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, the Conway Police Department recorded 69 calls for service on July 4, four calls for service on July 3, and seven calls for service on July 2, all relating to fireworks usage within Conway city limits.

According to a Conway City Ordinance, “the discharge, firing or use of firecrackers, rockets, torpedoes, roman candles, or other fireworks or substances designed and intended for pyrotechnic display, and of pistols, canes, cannons, or other appliances, using blank cartridges or caps containing chlorate of potash mixture, is hereby prohibited.”

The city ordinance also stated that public displays of fireworks ordered by the mayor or city council and “in the opinion of the chief of the fire department shall not be hazardous to surrounding property or endanger any person or persons,” will be allowed, such as at the Freedom Fest event.

Ordinance 7.16.02 states that “the sale of fireworks at retail is hereby prohibited. The chief of the fire department may, at his discretion, remove or have removed, at the owner’s expense, all stocks of fireworks or other combustibles exposed for sale, or held in violation hereof.” A post on July 1 from the Conway Police Department Facebook page stated, “CPD is wishing everyone a fun and safe holiday weekend! If you are celebrating, please do so responsibly. A reminder: fireworks are prohibited within city limits.”

The post also included the link to the Conway “City Ordinance pertaining to the discharging, firing, and/or purchasing of fireworks as well as the penalties for doing so.”

CPD Public Information Officer Lacey Kanipe said: “There were zero citations issued for calls regarding fireworks this weekend.

One warning was issued.

Many of the Calls for Service were dispositioned as ‘Unable to Locate’ or ‘Gone upon Arrival.’ “We do our best to answer every call, but many times, individuals that are discharging fireworks have already left the area by the time officers arrive.”

According to Kanipe, 15 officers worked on the day shift on the Fourth of July and 13 on the night shift, with an additional officer added to specifically work “fireworks-related calls.”

In the days leading up to the Fourth of July, on July 2, 13 officers worked the day shift and 17 officers worked the night shift and on July 3, 15 officers worked the day shift and 16 officers worked the night shift with two additional officers added to help with firework control.

“We take the issue seriously, and we always advise the public against discharging fireworks within city limits before the holiday,” Kanipe said.