Police: Man fatally shot by officer while trying to rob Arkansas bank believed to be 'Camo Cowboy'

Joseph Edward Turner, 58, of Grant County (top left) and a video still of the July 18, 2012, robber at the same bank location, then Metropolitan National Bank, at 1323 Military Road in Benton.
Joseph Edward Turner, 58, of Grant County (top left) and a video still of the July 18, 2012, robber at the same bank location, then Metropolitan National Bank, at 1323 Military Road in Benton.

A man fatally shot while trying to rob an Arkansas bank is believed to be the "Camo Cowboy" who robbed the same location four years ago, police say.

Joseph Edward Turner, 58, of Grant County entered the First Simmons Bank branch at 1323 Military Road in Benton around 2:40 p.m. Friday, brandishing a weapon, according to authorities.

An off-duty police officer with the Benton Police Department intervened, shooting Turner as he demanded money at gunpoint, according to authorities. Turner was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The officer involved, identified Tuesday as Sgt. Ronald Davidson, has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the ongoing investigation.

On July 18, 2012, a robber matching Turner's description — a white man standing about 5 feet 7 inches tall — entered the bank, then operating as Metropolitan National Bank, armed with a pistol, police said.

The robber left the bank with an undisclosed amount of money and fled on foot, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette previously reported.

"There is evidence leading us to conclude he’s the same person," Police Chief Kirk Lane said in a statement. “We are waiting on forensic evidence to hopefully confirm.”

The robber in that case also wore a full-length "woodland style" camouflage jacket, leather gloves, a black cowboy hat and sunglasses.

If forensic evidence confirms it, identifying Turner as the "Camo Cowboy" would mark the end of outstanding unsolved bank robberies in Benton, police said.

The fatal shooting of Turner was the third involving a Benton police officer in the past two months, according to the Democrat-Gazette.

Anyone with information related to the care is asked to call the Benton Police Department at (501) 778-1171 or (501) 315-8477.

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