January 17, 2013

Bad Timing Leads to Arkansas Man's Arrest

In the wrong place, at the wrong time. A wanted fugitive from Arkansas was taken into custody in Memphis on Saturday afternoon after a deputy from the Scotland County Sheriff's Department initiated a traffic stop for a faulty trailer taillight as the vehicle exited the Casey's parking lot.

Emergency service personnel descended upon Casey's General Sore responding to a report of a possible oven fire Saturday afternoon. As volunteer firemen arrived on the scene, witnesses indicated one patron became very nervous, and was heard exclaiming that the cops had arrived.

While the fire was ruled a false alarm, witnesses passed on the information to law enforcement officers who arrived on the scene of the emergency call. The traffic stop was initiated based on the vehicle's faulty equipment.

A system check on the driver, Kenneth William Stroup, 33, came back with an active bench warrant from Franklin County Circuit Court in Arkansas for the class C felony charge of failure to appear.

Stroup was taken into custody and is being housed in the Scotland County Jail, without bail, awaiting extradition.

According to the Charleston District Prosecuting Attorney's office, Stroup failed to appear for trial in November on felony burglary charges.