By David Hammer, The Associated Press
ALREAD, Ark. (AP) -- A search continued Tuesday in the Ozark National Forest for two men wanted in the shooting of a state trooper who was helping serve warrants on them after their neighbors disappeared.
Convicted felon Mark Holsombach, 49, and William J. Frazier, 28, who lived in a makeshift cabin off a dirt road became the target of the search after a shot fired Monday morning from their hut injured State Trooper Charlie Edmonson, and the two men escaped.
Police at the Van Buren County command post said at 7 a.m. that fresh crews were being sent in but that there had been no sightings of the men.
From the time authorities tried to serve three warrants on the two men at the hut near Alread, their disappearance went undetected for some 10 hours. The search then began in heavily forested mountains in Van Buren County. Tuesday morning, 37 officers fanned out amid the woods and bluffs in the continuing effort to find the fugitives.
“It could be a couple of days,” state police Sgt. Pete Westerman said Tuesday. He did not know how the men escaped from their 100-square-foot dwelling without dozens of officers noticing.
Westerman said officers have contained the area the best that they could. He said no neighbors have been evacuated and that it is up to residents to decide whether they want to leave.
Law enforcement officers found two bunkers filled with weapons and military-type gear on the property, but officers using night-vision equipment and a helicopter equipped with a heat-sensing device were unable to locate the men. Aircraft were aloft Tuesday and dogs from the Arkansas Correction Department were called in to try to catch scent of the men.
“They’ve been planning for something like this for some time,” said Van Buren County Sheriff Scott Bradley, who added the men may have bunkers all over the place. “The survival skills are to their advantage, but we still think we’re going to be able to get them.”
State police went to the men’s hut early Monday morning to serve a bench warrant for Holsombach for possession of firearms, a Florida arrest warrant that included a theft charge against Frazier, and a search warrant for the hut.
They also wanted to talk to the two about the disappearance of Theodore R. Throneberry, 46, and his wife Ann Ryberg Throneberry, 45.
Throneberry was last seen in February when he left a pipefitting job in Illinois and headed for his home near Alread. His wife has been missing from their home since March 1.
Bradley said they took a cadaver search dog to the Throneberry’s property and didn’t find anything.
Police said Holsombach and Frazier had been seen earlier standing in the Throneberrys’ front yard, near the men’s home along a dirt road 1 1/2 miles off Arkansas 16. The men were the last people seen with the woman before she disappeared.
Instead, a brief gun battle broke out at dawn Monday and Edmonson was shot in the left arm by rifle fire, Westerman said. The bullet ricocheted off Edmonson’s bullet-proof vest and struck his arm. He also chipped a tooth and had to see a dentist. Edmonson was treated and released from a Little Rock hospital. New warrants were issued, alleging attempted capital murder.
After noon Monday, officers tried to flush out the men with tear gas. More than three hours elapsed with no contact, and officers then rammed the door of the hut with an armored vehicle.
“We had our fingers crossed that we had them contained,” Westerman said. “Somehow or another, they got out right after the shooting probably.”
About four dozen officers searched a 200-acre area surrounding the property and feared the men would find places to hide in nearby Rattlesnake Hollow or make their way to Archey Creek, which leads away from the area.
After the sun went down, a handful of officers continued the search.
Westerman said police believe the men have many weapons, but weren’t sure of how many or what kind. He also said there’s no way to know how many supplies the two have. He said anyone with information on the men should call police.
Authorities said Holsombach has 12 felony convictions scattered across the country. When asked what type of convictions Holsombach had, Westerman said, “You name it. He’s nearly been in trouble since Day One.”
Theodore Throneberry’s father, Vernie Throneberry of North Little Rock, said he was worried about his son.
“I just pray that my son is still alive,” he said. “It’s not right for him to go before I do. His sister is tremendously worried about him.”
Throneberry told Little Rock television station KTHV that his son and daughter-in-law were friends with Holsombach and Frazier, but he feared the two men may have turned on the couple.
In nearby Alread School District, officials let parents pick up their children and about half of the district’s 85 students went home early. Tuesday, the district canceled classes, instead holding a staff development day for teachers.
Alread resident James McGaha said Holsombach and Frazier had lived in the community about three or four years. Police said the pair use several different names.
“Nobody knew them,” McGaha said. “We just know they have no water and no electricity.”
Carmalee Pack, 37, of Alread and her friend Savanah Scarberry, 19, also of Alread, said the home was made of wood that the men had gathered.
“I couldn’t believe someone would live in a house like that,” Scarberry said.
Alread is a tiny community 20 miles west of Clinton and about 65 miles north of Little Rock.