Four men have been charged in connection with an alleged attempted home invasion early Wednesday in which one would-be burglar was shot by the homeowner.
James Lawrence Freet, 25, who lists an East Belding Street address, and Andrew Rodney Hetherington, 33, and James Jonathan Douglas Quindt, 24, who both list the same address on South Ross Maddox in Pearcy, have each been charged with aggravated residential burglary, punishable by up to life in prison.
The alleged robber who was shot, identified as Kevin Coleman, 22, of Hot Springs, was transported by LifeNet to an area hospital and was still hospitalized on Thursday. He will be charged with the same count of aggravated residential burglary upon his release from the hospital, the sheriff's department said in a release.
Freet, Hetherington and Quindt remained in custody Thursday on zero bond and are set to appear May 6 in Garland County District Court.
According to the probable cause affidavit, the Garland County Sheriff's Department received a 911 call around 6:30 a.m. about multiple people attempting to make entry to a residence in the 1300 block of Thornton Ferry Road.
The female caller stated that her husband had exchanged gunfire with the robbers and one of them, later identified as Coleman, had been shot.
While responding to the call, sheriff's Deputy Justin Parker saw a maroon 2009 Toyota Scion stop and pick up a white male on Thornton Ferry Road and noted the subjects involved matched the description given earlier of the robbers, who were reportedly wearing dark clothing.
Parker stopped the vehicle in the 1000 block of Thornton Ferry and made contact with Hetherington and Quindt. Deputy Elwood McConnell had arrived to assist Parker and reportedly observed a revolver inside the Scion. Both Hetherington and Quindt were taken into custody at that time.
Deputies spotted another man wearing dark clothing, later identified as Freet, close to the house where the attempted robbery occurred and took him into custody.
All three men were brought to the sheriff's department and questioned after being read their rights. The men reportedly stated the three of them and Coleman had gone to the residence in the 1300 block which they thought was the home of a person they all knew.
They allegedly admitted they planned to "scare" and steal property from the person. They said they parked the Scion at a nearby apartment complex and all four of them walked through the woods to the rear of the residence.
Once there, Coleman allegedly began "kicking and beating on" the rear door trying to make entry. The homeowner was alerted and reportedly armed himself with a 9-mm handgun and, fearing for his safety, fired multiple rounds "in an attempt to scare the four suspects off," the affidavit states.
One robber allegedly returned fire and during the exchange of gunfire, Coleman was hit once. The other three reportedly fled the area after Coleman was shot.
Sheriff's Capt. Gary Ashcraft told The Sentinel-Record Wednesday the incident was "a robbery gone bad," and noted the one robber, Coleman, was shot once in the back, but the wound was non life-threatening.
"Luckily, the homeowner, or his wife, was not injured," Ashcraft said.
The release stated the investigation is still ongoing and anyone with information should contact sheriff's investigators at 622-3660.
According to court records, Hetherington was previously arrested on Dec. 6, 2017, on a felony charge of aggravated robbery after he shoplifted items at Walmart, 1601 Albert Pike, and then threatened employees who tried to stop him with a gun.
He pleaded guilty on May 14, 2018, to an amended charge of robbery and was sentenced to 10 years supervised probation, fined $2,500 and ordered to pay $420 in court costs. The case has reportedly been reopened.
Freet was previously arrested on Jan. 12, 2019, on a felony charge of possession of a controlled substance, hydrocodone, and was released on Jan. 21 on $3,500 bond. He pleaded not guilty on April 10 and is set to a hearing to determine the admissibility of statements he made to police on June 5.
Local on 04/26/2019