A Mountain Home man, 36-year-old Joshua Aaron Long, was released on a $50,000 bond Thursday in a bizarre incident in which he was charged with felony residential burglary and theft of property, after being arrested by Gassville Police.According to the arrest report, on Friday evening July, 7th a Gassville Police Officer was dispatched to 204 Smith Lane for a home intruder. On arrival, the officer made contact with the victim who said she and her husband own a home on Smith Lane and have been coming up on the weekends to renovate the residence. The distraught victim said she encountered a half naked man described as five-foot-ten to five-foot-eleven with dark hair. The victim reported the man as wearing a wig partially attached to his head, a black bra with pink tassels, and black female underwear.
She said as she entered the home the suspect came out of a bedroom, stumbled around and put on a pair of jeans and work boots. He then ran out the back door to the neighbor’s back yard. The victim said she was able to get a good look at his face in the light of the house and would be able to positively ID the suspect. She noted he took the wig off in the back yard as he was fleeing the residence.
The officer tracked the suspect to a nearby home, and when questioned, the owner said her handyman was in the bathroom and didn’t know if that was who the officer was looking for or if he had been out of the house. The handyman, later identified as Long, came to the door and ultimately denied being at the house next door where the incident took place.
The officer was given permission to look in the building behind the owner’s residence and, upon entering, a black bra with pink tassels was found in the floor.
As the officer went back to the home where the crime took place, he noticed a broken window, which appeared to be the method of entry into the residence for the suspect. Further investigation in the home’s bedrooms turned up additional women’s clothing, lingerie, wigs and other items. The officer also found an IPhone which allegedly came back as belonging to Long.
Long was taken into custody on Wednesday evening and is scheduled to appear in Baxter County Circuit Court to answer to the charges.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI