A Corvette with damaged tires, an alleged burglar who helped herself to someone else’s refrigerator and a man accused of elbowing an Atkins police officer in the face — it’s another week of Pope County court filings.
The roundup includes charges filed Oct. 30 and Nov. 2, along with several drug cases, failures to appear and alleged violations of sex offender registration requirements.
Anthony James McPherson, 34, of Fort Smith was charged Oct. 30 with second-degree battery, criminal trespass, fleeing on foot and resisting arrest after allegedly striking an Atkins police officer in the face and fleeing during a trespassing investigation.
An Atkins police officer encountered McPherson walking outside a residence on Avenue 1 NE on Oct. 18 after a caller reported an unfamiliar vehicle parked on the property, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The officer reported that McPherson repeatedly ignored commands to stop walking toward him and to stop reaching into his pockets and waistband. When the officer attempted to detain him, McPherson allegedly resisted and hit the officer in the mouth and nose with his elbow.
McPherson then ran away as the officer tried to retrieve his Taser, the report states.
Investigators later spoke with a woman at the residence who said she had recently ended a relationship with McPherson and kicked him out.
McPherson was located the following day walking along West Main Street in Atkins and taken into custody.
He was charged as a habitual offender with nine prior felony convictions. His bond was set at $2,000 cash.
Janet Louise Williams, 64, was charged Oct. 30 with residential burglary, theft of property and possession of a controlled substance after allegedly breaking into a home on Parker Road, helping herself to food from the refrigerator and stealing prescription medications.
Russellville police arrived at the home Oct. 12 to find a silver Pontiac coupe crashed into a flower bed in the front yard.
The homeowners told police nobody was supposed to be inside. Officers reportedly found Williams in the house wearing a hoodie belonging to one of the homeowners’ children.
Investigators say Williams had eaten food from the refrigerator and stolen hydrocodone and gabapentin pills. She also allegedly had marijuana in her possession.
The homeowners reported that their gate and several flowerpots had been damaged by the Pontiac.
Williams was arrested at the scene. She is charged as a habitual offender with two prior felony convictions. Her bond was set at $2,000 cash.
A damaged Corvette, surveillance video and an earlier argument over money are at the center of a criminal mischief case filed Nov. 2 against Michael Peter Bonacich, 64, of Dover.
The case began June 15 when a local attorney reported that someone had damaged the front tires of his black 2026 Chevrolet Corvette while it was parked at Walmart on East Main Street in Russellville. The damage was estimated at $870.
Surveillance footage showed a silver Chevrolet Silverado parking next to the Corvette. Investigators later connected a matching pickup to Bonacich using video images, which showed distinctive rims and damage near the truck’s rear bumper.
There was also some history between the two men. The attorney told police that Bonacich and another person had confronted him at his office about a week earlier over a financial dispute involving one of his clients. The argument was recorded, and the recording was provided to investigators.
Additional video obtained from Arvest Bank showed a man matching Bonacich’s description parking beside the Corvette, walking around it and bending down near a passenger-side tire before leaving, according to the affidavit.
Bonacich declined an invitation to speak with police about the incident.
Prosecutors charged him with first-degree criminal mischief, a Class A misdemeanor, on Nov. 2. A bench warrant for his arrest was signed Nov. 3.
Brandi May, 41, of Russellville
Jimmy Johnson, 36, of Russellville
Dangelo Johnson, 30, of Russellville
Thomas Bennett, 31, of Russellville
Jerry Johnson, 37
Joseph Clayton, 36
Gary Willis
Israel Nobles
Andrew Brooks
Corey Rayburn, 37, of Russellville
Jonathan Adam Johnson, 36, of Hector
Arthur Leonard Bennett III, 53, of Russellville
