Johnson County
Sheriff's Office
Clarksville, Arkansas
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10/22/2012

Deputy Discovers Home Burglary In Progress, Suspect Sought

Lt. Eddie Richards of the Johnson County Sheriff's Office interupted a residential buglary on Stillwell Road after he was alerted by a resident of a suspicious vehicle in the area.

Lt. Richards was working radar traffic southeast of the Stillwell Baptist Church when he was approached by a resident who reported that a dark colored motorcycle with one person on it had been driving up and down the road.  The resident stated that he had never seen the motorcycle before but it was parked at a residence just down the road.

Lt. Richards began looking for the motorcycle and noticed it parked in front of a residence on Stillwell Road, near the Stillwell Baptist Church.

Richards pulled behind the motorcycle and obtained the license plate number then backed away and parked near the back of the church to observe it.

In less than a minute Richards noticed someone exit the front door of the residence and head toward the motorcycle.

Richards pulled in behind the motorcycle and noticed a white male carrying a backpack putting items into a saddlebag on the motorcycle. Richards got out of his car to further investigate the person and was attempting to talk to him when the suspect started the motorcycle.  Richards ordered him to turn the motorcycle off and the suspect stated he couldn't go back to jail. When the suspect pulled the clutch and put the motorcycle in gear, Richards tackled the suspect and the motorcycle to the ground.  Richards pulled the key from the ignition and threw it into tall grass.

A scuffle ensued and Richards deployed an Aerosol Defensive Spray against the suspect.  The suspect ran to the roadway where Richards caught him and pulled his backpack off.  Richards threw the backpack into a ditch and began running across Stillwell Road and down a ravine after the suspect.  Richards pursued him a short distance and then returned to the residence in case another person was present and to preserve evidence in the case.

A tracking dog was brought to the scene and followed the suspect for approximately 2 hours.  The suspect could not be located.

The suspect in the case is Cory Daniel Rusher, age 25 of Ozark.  Rusher is a white male, 6'-1", 160 pounds with short brown hair and short, scraggly whiskers.  Rusher is currently on parole.  Anyone with any information on the location of Cory Rusher is asked to contact the Johnson County Sheriff's Office at 754-2200.

Rusher faces numerous charges in the case.  The backpack contained DVD's and Wii games and components taken from the residence.