Flashbacks

25 Years Ago

Aug. 9, 1995

Escapees Captured In Custer County

Bullet casings littered the intersection where local and area law enforcement officers set up the final roadblock for Granite Reformatory escapees late Monday morning.

Both escapees, Dale Bruce Wadesworth,43 and two-time convicted murderer Adam Thomas Wright, 26 after taking officers on a sixty-five minute, 48 mile chase. The pair began Monday morning allegedly breaking into the home of Peggy Cathrine Woodall. Woodall’s rural home is located 11 miles north of Granite on highway 6 in far northwest Kiowa County.

According to Kiowa County Sheriff’s office the two suspects forced their way into Woodall’s home tying her up with tape.

Officers found a small bag of tape the escapees left, which contained various types of tape.

The convicts then stole a .38 caliber revolver, a 12 gauge bolt action shotgun, and a .410 single shotgun, along with Woodall’s gray 1984 Ford LTD.

Kiowa County officials stated the pair must have proceeded north on Highway 6.

It was between 8 and 8:30 a.m. that a neighbor of Woodall found her and alerted authorities.

Oklahoma Highway Patrol in Clinton received a call from the OHP headquarters in Altus concerning the stolen car.

OHP officers were then dispatched into the area.

Sometime between 9a.m. and 10 a.m. an unidentified truck driver , who had heard of the stolen gray LTD reported seeing a car similar to its description. The car was following a dark blue minivan south of Hammon on Highway 34 heading north.

The truck driver was suspicious because both vehicles turned off on a county road following each other, keeping a close distance.

That is in the time frame when the suspects located an abandoned well site pond and drove the car off into the water.

The gray Ford LTD was recovered in a pond four miles east on Highway 73 and four miles north on a county road in Custer County.

It was at this location that the owner of the blue minivan, a white female, 25, from Elk City was allegedly raped.

First Assistant District Attorney Jan Warren stated Tuesday that warrants for both Wadsworth and Wright were issued to provide hair and body fluid samples.

The 25 year-old hostage is being treated as a rape victim and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation was not releasing her name as of Tuesday.

Along with the woman, The suspect allegedly kidnapped her two year old daughter. At 10:04 a.m. a unit from the Custer County Sheriff’s office sighted the blue minivan crossing Highway 33 west of Butler. According to OHP reports the suspects allegedly fired at the law officer and kept traveling the county road at a high rate of speed.

Within minutes an OHP airplane was also in pursuit of the minivan.

Before long several law enforcement units were also in pursuit along with an additional OHP plane.

The suspects went through four roadblocks where gunshots were fired at the vehicle.

It was not known to officers that the suspects had hostages until one of the escapees held the two year old out the window while traveling through a roadblock.

The chase finally came to an end when the suspects went through a fifth roadblock at an intersection located three miles east of Butler on Highway 33. As the escapees crossed the highway officers fired several rounds at the vehicle causing the minivan to miss a curve in the roadway and come to a stop in the ditch.

It was unclear as of Tuesday if the escapees surrendered easily or resisted in any way.

Excise Board Refuses County Salary Demands

Citing the possibilities of future financial difficulties the excise board followed the recommendation of the county commissioners and tentatively denied the salary increase being asked for by Washita County Treasurer Ron Peircey, Court Clerk Judy Boggs, Assessor Janie Batt and other employees of the Washita County Courthouse.

These officers had been asking for a raise of $308.00 per month and the return of the $150.00 in county travel, which stopped being paid in the early 1990’s due to budget constraints.

50 Years Ago

Aug. 6, 1970

Sentinel Holdup Suspect Caught

Sheriff Clifford (Skip) Hines received word this week that one of two suspects in an armed robbery at Sentinel has been arrested and is in jail at Perryton, Texas. Fred Anderson, assistant district attorney, said extradition papers probably will be filed early next week asking Heggie’s return to Cordell to face the charge. Heggie and Willie Wayne Waller were charged on complaint of Mrs. P. A. Hawkins of Sentinel. Waller is still being sought.

Mrs. Hawkins told County officers two men, claiming to know her son at Corpus Christi, Texas, came to her home Tuesday night, July 14.

She said they tied her and ran sacked the house looking for a large sum of money they apparently thought she had been keeping for her son.

She said the men took 300 dollars she had hidden in a sewing basket, two rifles and some jewelry.

She identified pictures of Waller and Heggie as the two men who robbed her at gunpoint.

City Firemen Help to Battle Hobart Blaze The Cordell fire department assisted the Hobart firefighters in battling a blaze that heavily damaged the Kiowa County courthouse there Wednesday night.

The Cordell fire department sent one truck which joined four Hobart units in bringing the blaze under control in less than two hours.

The fire was discovered shortly after 6 p.m. and was extinguished by 8 p.m. However, firemen stayed on duty until 11 p.m. as precaution against a new outbreak.

Kiowa County officials reported no valuable records were lost. Some old justice of peace records were damaged or destroyed.