Man wanted in connection with multiple homicides in Oklahoma arrested in Arkansas
By Sara Smart, Rebekah Riess and Jeremy Grisham, CNN
(CNN) — Stacy Lee Drake, the man wanted in connection to multiple crimes including a double homicide in Oklahoma, was arrested Thursday morning in Arkansas by the Morrilton Police Department and Arkansas State Police, according to an update from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.
Drake, 50, was believed to be in the Morrilton area after a vehicle he is suspected of stealing was found Tuesday night, authorities said earlier.
He was last seen on foot outside a motel in Morrilton, according to a release from the Arkansas Department of Public Safety.
“Drake is wanted in connection with homicides and carjackings in Oklahoma and is wanted on other felony warrants from multiple jurisdictions, with charges including aggravated robbery, carjacking, and murder,” the Arkansas Department of Public Safety said.
The bodies of a man and woman were found at a business around 6:30 p.m. local time on Tuesday near State Highway 64 and South 4670 Road in Gans, Oklahoma, according to a news release from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. Gans is in eastern Oklahoma – about 16 miles from the Oklahoma-Arkansas state line.
“Both sustained injuries consistent with homicide,” the release said.
The two victims were transported to the Office of the Oklahoma Chief Medical Examiner for identification and to determine a cause and manner of death, according to the bureau.
“As OSBI special agents began investigating the scene, they identified 50-year-old Stacy Lee Drake as a person of interest,” the agency said.
Earlier Wednesday, Arkansas DPS said in a release that Drake was “wanted in connection with” three homicides, but in an updated release said he was wanted for “multiple homicides.” CNN has reached out to Arkansas DPS for more information.
Drake is “a person of interest based on the information our investigators were able to obtain,” OSBI told CNN.
Late Tuesday night, authorities found a vehicle that Drake is believed to have stolen about 124 miles away in Morrilton, Arkansas, according to OSBI. Arkansas authorities have been searching for Drake since then.
Drake is believed to have purchased camping gear in Morrilton and authorities said he appeared to still be in the area as of Wednesday afternoon, according to the Arkansas Department of Public Safety.
The-CNN-Wire
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