The trip for two women who went on a week long joy ride through Arkansas in a stolen pickup truck ended in Baxter County when they were stopped and arrested.
On April 9, the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office received word from the Rector Police Department in far East Arkansas that a stolen 2014 Dodge Ram pickup was possibly headed for a residence located on Baxter County Road 916.
The two women charged in the case, 22-year-old Kalei Britt and 28-year-old Makaylah McKanna Riffle, appeared in Baxter County Circuit Court Monday.
Both women pled not guilty. The bond for each was reduced from $75,000 to $25,000.
After receiving the information from the Rector Police Department, multiple Baxter County sheriff’s deputies set up surveillance at locations where the truck could be spotted and stopped as it headed toward the residence on County Road 916.
A deputy spotted a 2014 white Dodge Ram pickup matching the description of the vehicle stolen in Rector turning onto County Road 11. The deputy got behind the suspect vehicle which was reported to have made a sharp turn into Hummingbird Lane.
Hummingbird Lane is described as a short dead-end road that ends in the driveway of a residence.
The vehicle stopped in the driveway of the residence almost at the same time the deputy got a return on a license check he had run. The report came back showing that the tag displayed on the truck actually belonged on a black Jeep.
According to the probable cause affidavit, a report on the truck and the two females in the vehicle matched information provided by the Rector Police Department.
Both women were reported to have active arrest warrants as parole absconders. They were arrested and arrangements were made to get the truck back to its rightful owner.
During an interview at the sheriff’s office, Riffle is alleged to have admitted stealing the truck from a car lot in Rector and driving it to various locations in the state from April 2 until the two women were located and taken into custody April 9.
Riffle told investigators she had picked Britt up in the truck but refused say where. “I had rather not answer that,” she is reported to have said.
Britt told investigators she was aware the truck was stolen and admitted she had been traveling with Riffle.
The women admitted they had gotten text messages from the Rector Police Department telling them to return the truck.
It was mentioned in the probable cause affidavit that the two women are also suspects in a theft reported to the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office on April 2. The victim said the two women had briefly stayed at the residence along Baxter County Road 18. It is alleged they stole antique U.S. and foreign currency, valued at about $1,500.
The currency theft is still under investigation.
The value of the stolen truck has been estimated at $15,000.
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