Two arrested for Nature Center burglary

Picture
Evans
Picture
Kline
February 3, 2016
Charlea Mills
     Two men are in custody for the burglary and vandalism of the Roaring River Ozark Chinquapin Nature Center last month. Rodney Leon Evans, 44, of Berryville, Ark., and Terri Dean Line, 54, of Green Forest, Ark., are each being charged with burglary in the second degree.
     In the early morning hours of Monday, January 4, Roaring River’s Nature Center was burglarized, and multiple items were stolen. The insides of the windows had been spray painted to conceal what the burglars were doing inside.
     Items stolen from the nature center included 11 chain saws, a four-wheeler, Native American artifacts and several tools stored there.
      Roaring River State Park Ranger Steve Jabben enlisted the aid of the Barry County Sheriff’s Department in the investigation, which led to a fingerprint being lifted from a can of tree marking spray paint at the scene. The fingerprint, which was sent to the state crime lab, matched a file on record through the Automated Fingerprint Identification System belonging to Evans. Ranger Jabben received notification of the match on January 25.
      When officers contacted the Carroll County, Ark., Sheriff’s Department, law enforcement was able to obtain search permission at Evan’s residence where they recovered many of the items taken in the nature center burglary. 
      During the investigation, officers discovered that more property was possibly taken to Kline’s residence in Oak Grove, Ark. Barry County Deputies and Oak Grove Police Chief Jason Hunt recovered multiple items from Kline’s property, as well.
      Between the two properties, officers recovered seven chain saws, a Yamaha all-terrain four-wheeler, artifacts and tools from the nature center, as well as a trailer stolen from a property on Highway 248. The estimated value of the property was around $28,000.
      Evans and Kline both signed waivers of extradition in Carroll County, Ark., and were transported to the Barry County Jail on Sunday, January 30. The men are each being held in the Barry County Jail in lieu of $30,000 cash-only bonds.