A felon on parole sought on multiple felony warrants by Hot Springs police since he fled from a traffic stop last week was arrested late Thursday hiding out in a condo in the county along with his girlfriend.
Tommy Earl Avance, 35, who lists a Hobson Avenue address, was taken into custody without incident shortly after 10 p.m. at a condo on Catalina Circle by agents with the Arkansas Community Correction's Special Response Team, Arkansas State Police and Garland County sheriff's deputies, ACC SRT Agent Brandon Emerson told The Sentinel-Record Friday.
Avance was charged with felony warrants for simultaneous possession of drugs and a firearm, punishable by up to life in prison, and fleeing in a vehicle, possession of a firearm by certain persons, theft by receiving of a firearm, possession of marijuana with purpose to deliver and possession of drug paraphernalia, each punishable by up to six years, stemming from the incident on April 21 and misdemeanor charges of possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia stemming from Thursday's arrest.
Avance appeared via video Friday morning in Garland County District Court where he pleaded not guilty to all the charges. Judge Ralph Ohm set his bond at $75,000, but Avance still has a zero bond parole hold on him. A felony review hearing is set for June 15.
His girlfriend, Latrenna Renee Adams, 39, who lists the same Hobson Avenue address, was taken into custody the same time as Avance and charged with a felony count of hindering apprehension or prosecution, punishable by up to 30 years, and misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance, marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Emerson noted investigators had questioned Adams previously about the whereabouts of Avance and she "denied any knowledge of where he was at," but they discovered she had rented the condo on Catalina Circle and was there with him.
Adams was later released on a $12,000 bond and is set to appear June 16 in district court.
According to the probable cause affidavit, on Feb. 21, shortly after 11 p.m., Hot Springs police Sgt. LeeAnn Zaner made a traffic stop on a black and red Chevrolet Camaro at the corner of Garland and Linwood avenues after observing the car "driving carelessly" earlier in the 100 block of Garland, "squealing its tires and revving its engine."
Zaner made contact with the driver, who she recognized as Avance, and his front seat passenger, later identified as Aaron Dwain Smith, 56, and asked for Avance's paperwork. Avance told her he purchased the vehicle earlier in the day. She told him to put the car in park and instead he sped away.
A short pursuit ensued, during which the Camaro reached speeds in excess of 80 mph, with Avance driving down the middle of the street. At one point, he headed straight toward Zaner, forcing her to put her unit into reverse and "end up in a ditch," causing extensive damage to her unit, but she was not injured.
The pursuit ended when the Camaro "stalled out" in an empty parking lot at the intersection of Lacey and Noles streets. At that point, Avance jumped out and fled on foot, but was seen dropping an item in the floorboard as he exited. He reportedly tried to retrieve the item before fleeing, but was unsuccessful.
Avance could not be located but the passenger, Smith, also a felon, remained in the vehicle and was taken into custody. He reportedly complied with all commands and was arrested without incident.
While clearing the car, officers located a Ruger 9-mm pistol in plain view in the floorboard. The gun was later determined to have been reported stolen. They also found a glass jar with 79.6 grams of marijuana, digital scales, a cellphone, sandwich bags and a package of unopened lottery tickets.
Smith was charged with possession of a firearm by certain persons, theft by receiving of a firearm, possession of marijuana with purpose to deliver and possession of drug paraphernalia, each punishable by up to six years in prison.
Smith, who also had two misdemeanor warrants for failure to appear, remained in custody Friday in lieu of $10,000 bond. He pleaded not guilty to the charges April 22 in district court and is set for a review hearing on June 8.
According to the affidavit, Avance was previously convicted of numerous felonies, including possession of a controlled substance in Helena in 2003, simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms in Hot Springs in 2005 and possession of cocaine with purpose to deliver in Boone County in 2013.
Police had posted on Facebook Thursday seeking the public's help in locating Avance who was considered "armed and dangerous." Emerson noted they had tried to locate him at his Hobson Avenue residence multiple times.
Local on 05/02/2020