Norfork man with long history of arrests behind bars again after short pursuit

A Norfork man with a long history of arrests is behind bars again after a short pursuit. Thirty-four-year-old Jesse Ray Bowman is facing charges from the pursuit and also had a warrant from an incident in February.The pursuit happened March 10 according to Norfork Police. An officer was watching traffic near the Wolf House when he spotted Bowman drive past on a motorcycle and knew he had a warrant and a suspended driver’s license. He pulled behind the motorcycle to initiate a traffic stop, but Bowman instead accelerated and fled.

The pursuit continued north on Arkansas State Highway 5, across the North Fork River bridge and then north on Arkansas State Highway 201. At that point, the officer passed the motorcycle, slowed down and forced Bowman to stop.

Bowman told the officer he fled because he had a warrant. He also admitted he had meth. During a search, the officer also found a green leafy substance and a smoking device. The license plate on the motorcycle belonged to his brother-in-law

For that incident, Bowman is facing felony charges of fleeing and possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine; along with misdemeanor charges of possession of a controlled substance, marijuana; possession of drug paraphernalia; having fictitious tags; driving on a suspended license; no liability insurance; riding a motorcycle without an operator’s license; and careless and prohibited driving.

His bond on those charges is set at $5,000.

FEBRUARY INCIDENT

The warrant for Bowman was from the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office after he left the scene of an accident Feb. 12.

According to the probable cause affidavit, a deputy was on patrol in the city of Norfork when a vehicle tried to avoid the deputy’s vehicle. The deputy ran the license plate which came back fictitious.

The deputy found the car wrecked a short time later at the intersection of Jordan Road and Baxter County Road 204, but the driver had left the scene.

The deputy checked the vehicle identification number and contacted the registered owner. The owner said they had sold the vehicle to Bowman a few months earlier. Bowman’s mail was inside the vehicle.

Three days later, another deputy made a traffic stop on a vehicle in which Bowman was a passenger. During questioning, Bowman admitted he was driving at the time and wrecked the vehicle.

For that incident, Bowman is facing misdemeanor charges of leaving the scene of an accident with damage, driving while license is suspended, having fictitious tags, careless and prohibited driving, having no liability insurance and failing to register a vehicle. Bond on those charges is $1,185.

Bowman is also facing a penalty enhancement for being a habitual offender and he is being held on a bond revocation. His total bond is $11,185.

PREVIOUS ARRESTS

Bowman is no stranger to the Baxter County Detention Center. He has been arrested multiple times since 2011 on charges including fleeing, delivery of methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, careless and prohibited driving and multiple driving infractions. He has faced similar violations in Izard and Stone counties. He has also served time in the Arkansas Department of Corrections.

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