Matthew Ryan Dove
A man charged with being in possession of a stolen truck discovered when law officers flew a drone over his property appeared in Baxter County Circuit Court Monday and entered a not guilty plea to the charges filed against him.
Thirty-one-year-old Matthew Ryan Dove, whose last known address was along Tucker Cemetery Road, is currently charged with theft by receiving, criminal mischief, possession of marijuana and paraphernalia used to ingest drugs.
Dove was arrested July 13 after officers located a reportedly stolen truck he had been seen driving using the drone.
The truck, a red 2021 GMC, was reported to have been stolen from Little Rock. It was alleged to belong to a man listing an address in Sharp County.
According to investigators, the theft occurred when the victim drove the vehicle to Little Rock to attend a party.
The truck came to the attention of local law enforcement when it was spotted by an officer with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. The officer saw the truck at the site of a previously wrecked vehicle in the Tucker Cemetery Road area.
The driver of the wrecked vehicle was reported to have fled into the woods after the accident and was not captured.
The reason Dove was at the scene of the wreck is not spelled out in the incident report.
When officers had identified Dove as the driver of the reportedly stolen truck, they went to his address along Tucker Cemetery Road and launched the drone.
The allegedly stolen truck was spotted partially covered by a tarp. Officers had to remove a barricade of tree limbs and wire fencing to clear the entrance of Dove’s property.
The truck was reported to have damage to the front driver’s side bumper. The On-Star system had also been tampered with and wires had been pulled loose under the hood.
Officers made contact with Dove and found a small plastic bag on his person believed to contain marijuana and two other bags holding suspected methamphetamine.
When Dove was asked where the key to the truck was, he showed officers where it was located inside the residence.
Dove was said to have admitted using the truck on several occasions and attempting to conceal it on his property knowing he would be in trouble if it was discovered in his possession.
He also told investigators the drugs and two glass pipes used to ingest drugs belonged to him.
How Dove came to possess the truck is not detailed in the probably cause affidavit.
Dove has one other criminal case open in Baxter County. He was arrested on drug-related charges stemming from a traffic stop in early October last year. He is scheduled to reappear in that case August 2.
A petition has also been filed to revoke his probation in a 2017 drug case.
On Sept. 21, 2017 Dove was convicted of possessing drugs and was put on probation for six years. There are a number of allegation concerning how Dove violated the terms and conditions of his probation.
The violations include the new charges filed this month as well as others recorded in April and May.
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