Mikayla Mynk (Photo courtesy of Arkansas Department of Correction)
Parole has been denied for one of three people sent to prison after pleading guilty to taking part in the early November 2015 murder of an elderly Midway couple.
The Arkansas Parole Board held a hearing in early August to discuss the case of 27-year-old Mikayla Jordan Mynk, who lived in Gassville at the time of the double murder.
The board’s decision just released was to deny parole for 12 months and revisit the case at that time.
THE CRIME
Mynk, Nicholas Ian Roos and Zach Grayham, were all in their early 20s at the time Donald and LaDonna Rice, both in their 70s, were shot to death.
The couple had recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.
In addition to killing the couple, Roos and Grayham stole property, including a large screen television set, from the Rice home along County Road 508.
In an attempt to hide evidence, they set fire to the structure.
The property taken from the Rice’s home was hauled away by Roos and Grayham in a pickup truck owned by the murdered couple. The 2015 GMC Sierra Denali was found empty and burned near Bruce Creek.
At one point during the investigation, a search warrant was issued for a residence occupied by Mynk. Officers reported finding property identified as having been stolen from the Rice home.
RICE HOUSE ABLAZE
The fire at the Rice’s residence was first reported when a motorist flagged down an Arkansas State Trooper just after 7:30 p.m., November 7, 2015.
The trooper said when he went to the address to check on the report; he saw flames shooting from a rooftop dormer.
Information gathered during the investigation showed the intensity of the flames was due to gasoline having been poured on furniture, carpets and other items before the fire was set.
NO KNOWLEDGE OF KILLING
During her sentencing, Mynk admitted she was aware of a plan to break into a home and steal items that could quickly be turned into cash.
She denied, however, that she had any advanced warning her two male companions planned to kill the Rice couple.
As information in the double murder case was developed, it was discovered Roos needed money to pay for legal representation in a custody matter. The burglary was done to produce funds for that purpose.
According to investigators, Roos and Mynk, identified as boyfriend and girlfriend, had driven around several areas in the county to see if they could find houses that looked unoccupied.
An unoccupied house would present the opportunity to break in and steal items without risking a confrontation with residents. It is unknown why they picked the Rice home. It, as subsequent events proved, was occupied and the two deaths resulted.
One investigator speculated the house might have been a tempting target since it was large with well-kept grounds and would have appeared to hold a sizable number of expensive items.
As the investigation continued, it was also determined that Roos had been the primary leader among those involved. It was Roos who shot the Rice couple with a gun he had purchased in Mountain Home only a day before the murders.
MYNK SENTENCE
After pleading guilty to reduced charges, including aggravated residential burglary and theft by receiving, Mynk was sentenced to 20 years in the Arkansas Department of Correction to be followed by 15 years of supervised probation.
She is serving her time at the Wrightsville-Hawkins Work Release Unit.
It became clear to investigators that Mynk had played a less active role in the incident than Roos and Grayham.
COUPLE SHOT AND KILLED
According to language contained in the plea statement, Mynk dropped the two men off in the vicinity of the Rice home and left the area to, ironically, attend a funeral.
When LaDonna Rice answered the door, Roos told her he was having trouble with his vehicle and asked if there was someone at home who could help.
She called her husband to the door, and the incident spiraled out of control from there.
Roos was said to have drawn his gun when he saw the husband approaching, and Donald Rice attempted to grab it from his hand. Roos shot the husband and then turned the weapon on the wife.
He told investigators he had shoved LaDonna Rice down on the floor after she started screaming when her husband was shot.
Roos added a macabre detail. He said as he stood over the woman with gun in hand that she was looking up at him when he pulled the trigger and shot her in the head.
REMAINS FOUND
After the fire at the Rice residence was extinguished and the rubble cooled sufficiently, law officers from a number of agencies, including specialized state police arson investigators, picked through the massive amount of debris at the large home.
Heavy equipment from the Baxter County Road and Bridge Department was brought in to assist with the task.
First, the remains of Donald Rice were found and identified, followed by those of his wife.
Roos and Mynk were picked up by officers first on suspicion of being involved in the double murder and Grayham was arrested two days later.
ROOS: LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE
Roos was sentenced to life without parole for his part in the murders and is serving his time in the Varner Unit of the state prison system at Gould. His initial reception date is shown as May 24, 2016.
Roos has made several attempts to obtain post conviction relief since being locked up. He has alleged a number of reasons for the requests, including that his attorneys supplied by the Arkansas Public Defender’s Commission, did not serve him well.
He contends that more attention should have been given to his mental problems, including stays in treatment facilities and suicide attempts.
None of his efforts have been successful.
RICE FAMILY SUES HARP’S
Members of the Rice family also filed a lawsuit in 2018 against Harp’s Food Stores.
The suit alleged that a teenage store clerk did not detect obvious signs that the purchase of the weapon was an illegal “straw man” sale. Such a sale occurs when one person fills out paperwork to buy a weapon that is then passed on to the actual buyer. One of Roos’ friends used his information on required paperwork. It was alleged that Roos felt the time he had spent at a mental health treatment center at Batesville would prevent him from making the purchase in his own name.
The federal lawsuit was eventually settled short of trial for an unspecified amount.
Roos’ friend who filled out the paperwork for the purchase of what turned out to be the murder weapon pled guilty to federal weapons charges in 2017.
He was sentenced to 16 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised probation.
Grayham was sentenced to 25 years in prison and is locked up in the North Central Arkansas Unit of the state prison system at Calico Rock. He initially entered the facility August 9, 2016.
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