This press release courtesy of the Jonesboro Police Department:
On 9/25/16 at approximately 9:30pm, Jonesboro Police were notified of the armed robbery of employees of the Dollar Tree located at the corner of Nettleton Ave and Red Wolf Blvd. An employee of the store told officers that a black male, armed with a handgun and wearing a dark short sleeve shirt and gray pants with a red bandanna over his face approached the two employees as they were leaving the store and demanded money.
The suspect took the phone of one employee and forced the other employee into her own vehicle and forced her to drive away. The witness stated that he last saw the vehicle headed south on Red Wolf Blvd.
As officers were searching for the victim and her vehicle, they were notified of a vehicle/pedestrian accident on I555, just south of Trumann. Poinsett County and Arkansas State Police responded to the accident and within a short amount of time, determined that the female victim was the victim from Dollar Tree. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene.
Within about the same time frame, authorities in that county were also notified of a vehicle in a ditch on Hwy 14 in Poinsett County. The suspect fled from the vehicle before officers arrived. Officers from the Arkansas State Police, Poinsett Co. S.O. and Jonesboro assisted in searching the area for the suspect.
The victim’s name is currently being withheld pending notification of next of kin. The victim will be sent to the State Crime for an autopsy. Investigators with the Arkansas State Police and the Jonesboro Police Department are currently investigating this incident.
Anyone who may have information regarding this incident is encouraged to contact the Jonesboro Police Department at 870-935-5657 or they can report his location anonymously through Crimestoppers by calling 870-935-STOP (7867).
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