Man accused in plot to break brother out of jail
By The Associated Press
This article was originally published January 11, 2010 at 10:42 a.m. Updated January 11, 2010 at 1:41 p.m.
HARRISON — A Mt. Judea man has pleaded not guilty to charges of planning to help his brother escape from jail and to plotting to kidnap the son of the Newton County sheriff.
Ricky Middleton, 51, pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit kidnapping, conspiracy to first-degree escape and conspiracy to intimidate a witness. He was arraigned Friday in Newton County Circuit Court in Harrison.
Middleton is charged in a purported plot to kidnap Sheriff Keith Slape’s son or spring Ricky’s brother, David Middleton, from custody. An arrest affidavit reveals what investigators allege was a plan to basically ambush a transport vehicle to free David Middleton or kidnap Slape’s son as leverage to affect David Middleton’s release from jail.
David Middleton was arrested in early November on charges of delivering methamphetamine and was being held in the Boone County jail. After complaining of health issues, he was taken to North Arkansas Regional Medical Center, where he reportedly attempted to escape.
According to the affidavit, Newton County investigator Kevin Thomas had been monitoring recorded phone calls between David Middleton and his wife, Rhonda, his daughter, Traci Waits, and his brother, Ricky, beginning about Nov. 14.
A prosecutor did not immediately return a call Monday to comment on possible charges against others in the case.
“In those calls, David Middleton tells Ricky Middleton and Waits to line up 15 or 20 people to try and free him from custody while going to or coming back from a hearing in Fort Smith,” the affidavit said.
The affidavit said Ricky Middleton talked to David about the route agents use to transport David for court and where they parked after arrival. They also talked about who would help with the escape plot.
The affidavit also shows conversations between Ricky and David Middleton in which they discuss the possibility of getting the nurse at the hospital who apparently witnessed David’s escape attempt to change her testimony or just refuse to testify.
After Middleton was arraigned, he was taken back to the Boone County jail to be held for Newton County on a $1 million bond.
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