Newton County, Arkansas — Brooke Walker, 45, of McKenzie, the woman reported missing Tuesday morning following a house fire at her Campbell Lane residence, was arrested Tuesday evening by the Newton County Sheriff’s Office in Arkansas.
Walker was taken into custody at 6:52 p.m. Wednesday, May 13. Her charges had not been listed as of publication time. This story will be updated as charges become available.
Authorities confirmed Walker was in possession of Richard Chandler’s stolen 1997 blue Ford F-150 at the time of her arrest. Chandler had reported the truck stolen from his Fields School Road driveway sometime between 2 and 4 a.m. Tuesday, the same timeframe Walker was last seen in the area asking neighbors for a ride.
A Flock license plate reader captured the truck’s plate on US-65 near Harrison, Arkansas, leading to Walker’s location.
A be-on-the-lookout bulletin had gone out locally at approximately 8 a.m. Tuesday. A recording obtained by the Carroll County Observer from Benton County confirms the BOLO included the truck’s description and Walker’s name. The recording also captured a dispatch warning to officers that the vehicle may have been transporting a rifle and ammunition, and that officers should use caution.
Walker was the tenant of the Campbell Lane home that burned in the early morning hours of Tuesday, May 12. The cause of that fire remains undetermined.