Trio Busted For Dill City Burglary

A Burns Flat man and a Dill City couple have been arrested for their alleged involvement in a burglary in Dill City late last month.

Cole Taner Reese, 28, of Burns Flat, and Ronnie James Dowler, 51, of Dill City, were each charged with felony counts of burglary in the first degree and knowingly receiving or concealing stolen property. Lisa Michele Bailey, 50, also of Dill City, was charged with a single felony count of knowingly receiving or concealing stolen property. She was also hit with a misdemeanor charge of possession of a controlled dangerous substance.

The charges stem from an incident of June 27, 2020, when Washita County Sheriff’s Deputy Curtis Weatherly was dispatched to a Dill City residence to investigate a reported breakin. When Weatherly arrived on the scene, the victims told him their garage had been broken into at some point during the night. They discovered the break-in that morning while taking out the trash.

The victims provided Weatherly with a list of items taken from the garage, including an air compressor, a tool set, a power washer, a sawzall, a portable work bench, and a screwdriver set. The total value of the stolen items was estimated to be in excess of $1,000.

According to the affidavit of probable cause, a social media post about the stolen items resulted in one of the victims receiving a phone call implicating Reese and Dowler in the crime. Later that day, the work bench was returned and positively identified by the victims.

A search warrant was then obtained for Dowler’s Dill City residence, which he shares with Bailey. During the search Weatherly discovered the power washer had been sold earlier in the day, and it was recovered shortly thereafter at another residence in Dill City. The socket set was recovered from another individual who told Weatherly Reese and Dowler had sold it to him for an undisclosed amounth of money.

While executing the search warrant on the residence of Dowler and Bailey, deputies also reportedly discovered digital scales and numerous clear plastic baggies. Some of those baggies had a “white crystal like” residue and what appeared to be scraping tools.

Bailey, after being read her Miranda warning, reportedly admitted that she and Dowler occasionally had methamphetamine in the house and occasionally gave some to their friends.

The three were taken into custody by the Washita County Sheriff’s Department. If convicted, Reese and Dowler could be sentenced to between seven and 20 years each on the burglary charge and by up to five years in prison or not more than one year in the county jail, and/or a fine of up to $500 for the receiving or concealing stolen property charge. Bailey is facing up to five years in prison or not more than one year in jail and/or a fine of up to $500 on the stolen property charge and up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000 on the possession charge.