A man once listing a Mountain Home address and with a long history of committing crimes, skipping court, running from the law, evading supervision by probation and parole officers and being the object of large-scale manhunts was most recently declared a fugitive June 2.
Thirty-six-year-old Stephen Richard Whaples was spotted in Izard County on August 3 and a manhunt was launched, according to the Izard County Sheriff’s office. He was not found at that time. On August 4, he was seen again but managed to elude capture by fleeing on foot.
The Arkansas Department of Corrections dog team was called in to assist as has been true in other searches involving Whaples.
THE HUNT
On the afternoon of August 3, an Arkansas State Trooper spotted a dark older model Chevrolet S-10 pickup and reported the driver avoided eye contact, that the truck had a broken rear window and was displaying a dealer’s extra plate.
The trooper attempted to make a stop on the truck but it did not stop. A chase ensued and the truck ended up at a residence where the three occupants left the truck and started running.
The trooper chased after the driver on foot for about 100 yards through a thickly wooded area. The chase ended when the driver, later identified as Whaples, vaulted a fence and continued running.
While running Whaples began dropping items including a camouflage t-shirt, a cigarette package and finally a nearly full one-liter Mountain Dew soda bottle.
A clear plastic bag containing suspected methamphetamine was located inside the cigarette package.
According to the probable cause affidavit, during the evening of August 3 and into the morning of August 4, several residents reported seeing Whaples in the area. Residential security and game cameras were reported to have captured images of Whaples. He was said to have been “wandering around” and “even attempting to gain entrance into private structures.
At approximately 4 a.m. on August 4 Izard County sheriff’s deputies responded to a reported trespassing at a residence located along West Crossroads. The deputies recognized Whaples but he again fled on foot. A canine tracking team from the Arkansas Department of Corrections was brought to the scene but Whaples eluded capture.
One of the two females reported to have been in the truck was located and arrested but she is not listed in the probable cause affidavit. The other passenger was still at large as of Monday.
Neither the truck or the dealer’s plate displayed on the vehicle had been reported stolen. When the truck was searched it was found to be running and “could not be shut off without disconnecting the ‘hotwiring job’ in the steering column or disconnecting the battery or computer.”
When he is captured, Whaples will be served with a warrant issued on the probable cause affidavit that was filed August 5. He is to be charged with two felonies — possession of methamphetamine and paraphernalia to use the drug. The other charges are all misdemeanors and include fleeing on foot along with a number of traffic violations.
The recommended bond for Whaples is $100,000.
MENTIONED IN INCIDENT REPORTS
Whaples name has also recently appeared in Baxter County Sheriff’s Office incident reports in which he was named as a suspect by a theft victim. The victim reported that sometime between July 22 at 6:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. July 23, this year someone had kicked down the door to her boyfriend’s house.
The woman told officers she suspected that Whaples and a person identified as his girlfriend, 32-year-old Victoria Watts, were involved. She said Whaples and Watts had been tenants in the house and had only moved out July 19.
If the victim’s information is correct, Whaples and Watts made the move six weeks and six days after he was declared to have absconded from supervision.
The victim said her suspicions were based on the fact that personal property left behind by Whaples and Watts had all been removed.
Watts has an open criminal case in Baxter County Circuit Court. The charges stem from an incident on May 30 last year in which sheriff’s deputies responded to a report of suspected theft and trespassing at a residence located along State Highway 5 South.
When deputies arrived on scene, the vehicle that had been seen at the residence had driven away and was then spotted parked at a nearby storage complex. The vehicle was eventually identified as a black 2012 Chevrolet pickup truck.
When a deputy approached the truck in his patrol car, he activated his blue lights and the truck accelerated and fled the scene.
As the deputy pursued the truck, a man in the bed of the vehicle began throwing items at the pursuing patrol car.
The fleeing vehicle eventually encountered power lines that had been downed in a tornado that had gone through the area May 26 and had to leave the highway. It was reported to have crashed into trees at the side of the road.
The occupants of the vehicle fled. Watts was arrested after she was spotted by a sheriff’s office drone lying down in the woods about 20 feet from the wrecked truck. When she was arrested, Watts was reported to have had several cellphones in her backpack. The phones were alleged to have featured photos of Whaples and Watts together.
Watts charges include breaking and entering, theft of property, criminal trespass and fleeting both in a vehicle and on foot. Another person, 38-year-old Morgan Miller who listed his address as Oroville, California, was charged with theft of property, breaking or entering and fleeing. He pled guilty on November 18 last year and was sentenced to five years in prison with three to serve and two suspended.
According to electronic records, Miller spent very little time in prison. After being paroled he was required to have been supervised until 2027 but he was listed as absconded as of July 17.
Court records show that Watts has not appeared in her open case since May 5 of this year and is due to make a reappearance September 15.
In the incident report, Whaples is identified as the person suspected of standing in the bed of the truck. He was not apprehended or charged at that time.
Whaples’ past charges have included criminal trespass, fleeing, theft of property, refusal to submit to arrest, breaking or entering, commercial burglary, being a felon in possession of a firearm, criminal mischief, and possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia.
In one case, he was accused of stealing All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) and selling them to raise money to pay fines levied in an earlier case.
FLEEING HISTORY
Whaples has an established history of fleeing from law enforcement and not showing up in court. He was the subject of four manhunts in less than a year during a period in 2011-2012. At one point, he was described as a most wanted fugitive by the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office. The manhunts have involved officers from multiple agencies, roadblocks, tracking dogs and the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office helicopter.
During the years, Whaples has been found hiding in various places, including a camper, a mobile home, and asleep on the porch of a residence along Tracy Ferry Road.
He is also mentioned as a person of interest in a case involving someone living in a residence damaged by the late May 2024 tornado. Whaples was being searched for at the time because of his suspected involvement in thefts from a residence and storage units.
During the search, a Briarcliff resident called to report a suspicious male in her yard with a blanket covering his head and body.
The man was not located and deputies brought in the K-9 tracking team from the North Central Unit of the state prison system and the dogs tracked the person to the storm damaged house.
In a bedroom located in the basement, a foam mattress pad, pillow and sheets were found indicating that someone had been staying in the home since the tornado.
The initial criminal case against Whaples was filed in October 2011 when he was 22-years-old.
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