BENTONVILLE -- The Arkansas State Police has the original document signed by Benton County Sheriff Kelley Cradduck concerning the hiring of a former jailer, according to court documents.
Cradduck is accused of ordering his staff to backdate Gabriel Cox's hiring date. He also has been accused of instructing his secretary to lie to state police, who are investigating the case.
Sheriff's office Maj. Nathan Atchison on Oct. 8 provided state police investigators with Cox's payroll form with a Sept. 28 effective hiring date, according to a probable cause affidavit. The form was signed by Cradduck on Oct. 8.
Cox's first work day was Oct. 7, according to court documents.
Cradduck was arrested Tuesday on accusations of tampering with public documents, a Class D felony; and tampering, a Class A misdemeanor. Formal charges haven't been filed against Cradduck. Jason Barrett was appointed special prosecutor in November after Nathan Smith, the Benton County prosecutor, recused.
Cradduck's arraignment is set for 8 a.m. Feb. 29 in Circuit Judge Robin Green's court. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Brad Karren.
Cradduck said he was attempting to help Cox, who was homeless at the time, by hiring him to work in the jail. Cox recently was fired after Rogers police arrested him on misdemeanor drug charges. Cox's personnel records listed Cradduck's address as his home when he was hired. Cradduck has said Cox moved into an apartment in Rogers after he received his first paycheck.
Atchison informed state police that he and sheriff's office employee Myrna Scott were reviewing Cox's file on Nov. 3 in response to a Freedom of Information Act request for the file, according to the affidavit. Atchison said they found the document Cradduck signed to pay Cox for two weeks he didn't work, according to court documents.
Atchison told state police that he later reviewed the file before it was released, and the backdating document was missing, according to court documents. Atchison said he suspected the document had been shredded, according to court documents.
Scott said she didn't release the document -- a blank sheet with a hire date and Cradduck's signature, according to the affidavit. Scott said she didn't think the document was relevant and didn't release it as part of the information request, according to the probable cause affidavit. Scott denied she shredded or destroyed the document.
Cradduck has denied wrongdoing and has described the investigation as "politically motivated."
Felony tampering occurred Oct. 5 when Cradduck instructed Dianna Goodwin, his secretary, to immediately hire Cox and backdate his hiring, according to the probable cause affidavit. The affidavit says misdemeanor tampering occurred on or about Oct. 13. Cradduck, when interviewed by state police on Oct. 13, denied he instructed anyone to backdate documents concerning Cox's hiring.
State police obtained an affidavit Oct. 14 from Rogers attorney Don Kendall. The affidavit was signed by Goodwin. The affidavit says Cradduck contacted Goodwin on Oct. 13 and told her that he had been interviewed by the state police. It says he told her to deny he had instructed her to backdate Cox's hiring documents.
Bill Adams, Cradduck's campaign manager, on Wednesday described the case as a political stunt to harm Cradduck's chances of securing a third term in office.
"Why wait two months if they already had all this information?" Adams said. "This is a joke."
The fact that Cradduck's arraignment is scheduled for the day before the primary election isn't helpful for the campaign, Adams said.
Adams said he would like to have Cradduck's arraignment moved up, but such a request is up to Cradduck's attorney. Drew Miller, who represents Cradduck, declined to comment Wednesday.
The Republican primary is March 1. Cpl. Timothy Filbeck with the Siloam Springs Police Department, Maj. Shawn Holloway with the Benton County sheriff's office and Lt. Paul Pillaro with the Lowell Police Department are Cradduck's opponents.
Metro on 01/21/2016