Police arrest man in Pine Bluff fatal gunfire

Suspect jailed on drug, firearm counts

PINE BLUFF -- Police have arrested a man in the fatal shooting of Clifton McDowell, 24, of Pine Bluff.

Tony Warren, 20, also of Pine Bluff, was arrested on Friday at the Jefferson County jail where he was being held on charges of drug and firearm possession.

Warren appeared Monday in Pine Bluff District Court for a probable-cause hearing and is being held without bail pending the filing of formal charges. His next court appearance is scheduled for May 14.

McDowell was shot around 2:30 p.m. April 8 near Iris Street and Howard Drive, according to a probable-cause affidavit.

Police found McDowell lying in the street near a black, 2007 GMC Yukon with several bullet holes in it, the affidavit said. McDowell had gunshot wounds in his upper body and was taken to Jefferson Regional Medical Center, where he died during surgery.

Damage from bullet fragments also was reported to nearby two houses and to a vehicle.

Security video from two residences showed a black GMC Yukon and a burgundy Chrysler 200 pull up next to each other at the stop sign at Iris and Howard, according to the affidavit. Then the Yukon turned right onto Howard Drive and crashed into a vehicle parked at a residence.

Warren was arrested on drug and firearm charges April 9 after being pulled over for failure to use a turn signal, according to reports. Police searched the car and found 21 grams of marijuana, a Springfield .45-caliber ACP semi-automatic pistol, and a box of .45-caliber ACP ammunition, according to an affidavit.

Warren told police that he did not have a driver's license and that the car he was driving, the Chrysler 200, did not belong to him, the affidavit said. Police found a backpack containing the marijuana and the box of ammunition inside the car, the affidavit said. The loaded pistol was found under the passenger seat.

Police also found a spent 7.62mm round on the bottom of the seat, the affidavit said.

The state Crime Laboratory confirmed that the pistol matched six spent shell casings taken from the site of McDowell's murder near 2201 Howard Drive, according to reports.

Questioned by detectives, Warren told police that he was at a hotel in Little Rock with a cousin when the shooting occurred, the affidavit said. The hotel had no record of him or the cousin being there, the affidavit said.

A search of Warren's cellphone revealed a text from a woman that was received at 1:07 p.m. April 8 -- the day of the slaying -- asking where he was. According to the affidavit, Warren responded that he was on Howard Drive.

The shooting occurred 5 minutes later at 1:13 p.m.

State Desk on 04/18/2019

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