HOT SPRINGS -- A Montgomery County man pleaded innocent Wednesday to multiple charges stemming from allegations that he fled from a Garland County sheriff's deputy early Tuesday in a vehicle reportedly containing the body of another Montgomery County man.
Keith Edward Ashlock, 58, who lists an address in Pine Ridge, an unincorporated community in Oden Township in Montgomery County, had not been charged in connection with the body found, as of Wednesday.
The identity of the body has not been released.
A post on the Montgomery County sheriff's office's Facebook page stated that Sheriff David White was contacted by Garland County sheriff's investigators about the body found and went to Ashlock's residence, where he found evidence of a crime scene. The post states foul play is suspected in the death of the victim, also a resident of Montgomery County, and that Arkansas State Police worked the crime scene.
Ashlock appeared via video Wednesday afternoon in Garland County District Court and pleaded innocent to a felony charge of first-degree criminal mischief, punishable by up to 10 years in prison, and misdemeanor counts of fleeing in a vehicle, fleeing on foot, first-degree criminal mischief and obstructing governmental operations, all stemming from his pursuit and arrest Tuesday.
A felony review hearing to determine if the case will be bound over to Garland County Circuit Court is set for June 17.
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According to the probable cause affidavit released Wednesday, at around 3:45 a.m. Tuesday, Deputy Aaron Bowerman was southbound in the 5000 block of Central Avenue when he got behind a Cadillac with an Oaklawn Racetrack vanity plate in place of an authorized license plate.
He activated his lights to make a traffic stop and the vehicle made a quick left turn into Hamilton Pointe Condos, 5000 Central, "purposefully breaking the security gate." Bowerman turned around to pursue the vehicle and located it in front of one of the condos with the engine running, but the driver was gone.
Hot Springs police sent a K-9 unit in an attempt to locate the driver and the dog was able to track him to the roof of an adjoining condo where he was hiding behind a chimney. A check of the vehicle identification number on the Cadillac returned to a Russell Eugene Kelly, 55, of Hot Springs.
In doing a vehicle inventory of the Cadillac before towing it, deputies located the body of a white man in the vehicle, a news release said. It did not indicate where in the vehicle the body was found.
According to court records, Ashlock pleaded guilty May 12, 2014, in Pulaski County to felony charges of residential burglary and theft of property, was sentenced to five years in prison and was on parole. He had also pleaded guilty on July 6, 2010, in Garland County to a felony charge of first-degree criminal mischief and was sentenced to three years in prison.
Metro on 05/04/2019