A Viola man, 57-year-old James Henry Howell, has been charged with felony counts of rape, kidnapping and theft of property, along with a misdemeanor count of criminal trespass. Fulton County Sheriff Al Roork says if convicted of the rape and kidnapping charges, Howell could face life in prison.
According to the probable cause affidavit filed Wednesday, law enforcement was alerted to the incident when an Izard County woman was driven to the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office by a motorist who stopped to help her.
The woman told Fulton County authorities she had employed Howell to work on her mobile home in Dolph, saying she had known the Viola man about two years.
On August 28th, the two were at her home in the late afternoon when Howell allegedly became verbally and physically abusive. She said while she was not attracted to Howell, the two had a prior intimate relation on one occasion.
She said Howell wanted her to give him a ride and blamed her for making him walk in the rain. She said Howell became angry, saying his tone of voice, behavior and past violence made her scared for her life. Howell allegedly hit the woman in the mouth and struck her head with a flashlight, leaving visible bruising and swelling.
Having been struck three times, the woman allowed Howell to drive her vehicle. She said he drove dirt roads at a high rate of speed, leading her to believe she was going to die. He then pulled off a rural road in Fulton County into a brushy area and again the woman said she thought she was going to die.
She said Howell pulled a bullet out of his pocket and told her he had saved it for himself, and she might get to watch. It was after this statement the alleged rape occurred.
The two returned to the vehicle and drove around for a long time. She said Howell went to a house, acting like he knew the residents and asked for gasoline for the vehicle. However, the people did not provide the gasoline.
They left and continued to drive until the vehicle ran out of gasoline. Howell then made the woman walk through woods and fields as they looked for gasoline. As they walked, Howell reportedly threatened the woman saying if she talked about the incident, he would knock out her teeth, wire her jaws shut, and take care of her.
The two then approached what the woman described as a Mennonite home, where she tried to let the homeowner know she needed help, but he did not understand. However, the man did take gasoline to the vehicle the two were traveling in.
The woman then got into the Mennonite man’s vehicle, with Howell trying to get her out and demanding she return to their vehicle. After a struggle where Howell tried to grab the woman’s purse, phone and keys, he left her in the vehicle.
It was at this point the motorist stopped to help and the woman asked to be taken to the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office. The report notes it was approximately 8:00 on the morning of August 29th when the woman came to the sheriff’s office, noting she had been with Howell involuntarily for several hours.
The woman was treated at the Fulton County Hospital’s emergency room.
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