A man with a criminal record wanted in connection with at least three murders — two in Oklahoma and one in Alabama — was arrested in Arkansas on Thursday morning after a two-day manhunt, authorities said.
The Arkansas Department of Public Safety said in a statement that Stacey Lee Drake, 50, was found in a wooded area in Morrilton in the central part of the state and taken into custody “without incident.” Authorities said Drake had been served with an arrest warrant for two murders this week in Oklahoma and the killing of an Alabama man in May.
Drake also has other felony warrants out for his arrest in multiple jurisdictions, including aggravated robbery and carjacking, according to the Arkansas Department of Public Safety. He was being held in the Conway County Jail on Thursday.
A motive for the murder has not been released, and it is unclear whether Drake had an attorney.
“What caused him to become a person who became violent and killed someone? I don't know,” Capt. Jack Kennedy, commander of the Violent Crimes Unit for the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Office in Alabama, told reporters at a news conference Thursday.
The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation said in a statement Wednesday that the bodies of a man and woman were discovered Tuesday at a propane gas company in Gunns, in the eastern part of the state. Court records say the man and woman, Taylor Sharp and Tara Underwood, were shot to death.
Investigators identified Drake as a suspect in the murders based on surveillance video, which showed him leaving the store in Underwood's GMC Acadia, according to court records.
Her SUV was later seen by police parked outside a Motel 6 in Morrilton, Arkansas, about 120 miles east of Gunns, Oklahoma, according to court records.
Before Drake was found, Arkansas authorities had warned the public that he was “considered to be armed and dangerous” and had been purchasing camping equipment, authorities said.
Kennedy said Thursday that Drake was also involved in the murder of a man in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on May 14. Kennedy said the man, Russell Andrews, was found shot to death inside an Alcoholics Anonymous building in downtown Tuscaloosa.
Kennedy said hours after Andrews was killed, his car was stolen and later found on an interstate near the Arkansas-Oklahoma border.
Captain Kennedy added that Mr Andrews was a long-time volunteer at the AA centre but it was unclear what the motive for killing him was.
“Nobody had a bad word to say about him,” Capt. Kennedy said. “He had no violent side.”
Captain Kennedy said Drake had been in Tuscaloosa for a week or two before Andrews was killed, and described Drake as a “vagrant” with no fixed address or employment record.
“At the time he was in Tuscaloosa, he was using a false name and possibly changing his clothing, including a hat and glasses,” Inspector Kennedy said. “It appears he was traveling around the country using this false name and living this lifestyle in an effort to avoid incarceration.”
Captain Kennedy said Mr Drake may also be involved in the fourth murder.
“I wouldn't be surprised if there were other unsolved murders in other jurisdictions because of his lifestyle,” Inspector Kennedy said.
Kennedy said Drake has an “extensive” criminal history spanning multiple states, including robbery, carjacking and kidnapping.
“If you look at his criminal history you can see he has had a string of escalating violent behaviour,” Inspector Kennedy said.
