Latest news with #VanBuren
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
Former Van Buren detective recounts 1995 interview with Billy Jack Lincks
VAN BUREN, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Billy Jack Lincks was a father, husband, World War II veteran and airline employee, but, most notably, he's the suspect in Morgan Nick's disappearance. Lincks had a prior criminal history, being convicted of sexual solicitation of a child in 1996 and first-degree carnal abuse in 1992, which was later repealed by Arkansas Act 1738 of 2001. His 1996 conviction was met with a six-year prison sentence, serving only four of those before dying at Tucker Unit on Aug. 5, 2000 at 75 years old. Kevin Johnson, a former detective with the Van Buren Police Department and now a pastor at Home Church in Barling, said he always saw Lincks as an alcoholic, crossing paths with him for the first time when he arrested him for Driving Under the Influence in 1984. 'Chasing Fireflies': KNWA/FOX24 special takes a look back at Morgan Nick's disappearance 30 years later 'You can take the nicest person there is and give them alcohol, and they become a lunatic or a maniac or a total angry person that you don't want to be around,' Johnson said. 'When he started drinking, I think the demons, so to speak, came out and he did the things he shouldn't have done.' On Aug. 29, 1995 — two months after Nick's disappearance — Lincks drank a fifth of rum, drove from Fort Smith to a Sonic on the corner of Fifth and Broadway streets in Van Buren and attempted to lure an 11-year-old girl into his 1986 red Chevrolet truck, court documents said. An incident report from Aug. 29, 1995, stated Lincks offered four boys—three of whom were brothers and another being a friend—money to leave, while he talked to their sister on the corner of Fifth and Webster streets. While at the street corner, Lincks offered the 11-year-old money in return for sexual favors before she turned around and ran back to the Sonic screaming and crying for her brothers to call the police. Lincks sped away and hit a telephone pole in the process. Johnson said the red paint from Lincks' truck scraped off onto the pole. That clue, coupled with descriptions from the 11-year-old girl, led investigators to Lincks, Johnson said. Johnson brought Lincks in for an interview at the Van Buren Police Department Aug. 30, 1995, one day after the incident. 'He was never combative. He was never argumentative, anything like that,' Johnson said. 'It was a very casual conversation. It wasn't like there was any rub against each other.' National Center for Missing and Exploited Children uses forensic artists to help save lives However, the one thing Johnson was looking to get out of Lincks — the truth — was hard to come by. In the interview, Lincks recalled being in Fort Smith before going to the Sonic, descriptions of what the children looked like, offering the children money and hitting something when driving away, all despite claiming he was too drunk to remember what he talked about with the 11-year-old girl. 'He did remember it,' Johnson said. 'He was just withholding that because of the seriousness of the moment.' Nearly 25 years after his death, Lincks was named a suspect in Nick's disappearance by the Alma Police Department on Oct. 1, 2024, after a hair sample from his truck linked back to her DNA. Johnson has been a pastor for 26 years. He believes in the afterlife, but he's unsure of where Lincks' spirit may be. 'Hard for me to say because I'm not the judge,' Johnson said. 'Everyone who passes this life, if you're related to them, no matter what, you have hope. 'Maybe he turned his life around in prison, we don't know, but certainly, that's always the hope,' Johnson said. Police ask the public to contact them at 1-800-843-5678 if they have anything that can help further the investigation into Nick's disappearance. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
‘Chills': Van Buren woman reacts to living near suspect Billy Jack Lincks' old home
VAN BUREN, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — The name 'Billy Jack Lincks' garners a chilling reaction from many in the River Valley to this day. After being a person of interest for years, Lincks was named a suspect in Morgan Nick's disappearance Oct. 1, 2024, nearly a quarter-century after dying at Tucker Unit in Central Arkansas in 2000 at the age of 75. Not much of his has withstood the test of time, except for his old home in Van Buren. 'I just got the chills again,' Ashli Rowe said when she learned she lives near Lincks' old residence. 'I was not expecting that at all. It literally made my heart sink.' 'Chasing Fireflies': KNWA/FOX24 special takes a look back at Morgan Nick's disappearance 30 years later Lincks told investigators he lived at that address during an interview for a separate crime he committed in August 1995, two months after Nick's disappearance. He was later convicted of sexual solicitation of a child after attempting to lure an 11-year-old girl into his truck at a Sonic in Van Buren. Lincks was sentenced to six years in prison, only serving four before his death. Rowe was born June 5, 1995 — four days before Nick went missing. She thinks the story that caught national attention may have influenced her mother's 'helicopter' parent tendencies. Rowe has five children between the ages of 2 and 10. She said she keeps a close eye on the kids out in public, assuming a potential kidnapper could be around the corner. Arkansas Senate Bill 371 passes, Morgan Nick Foundation shares impact 'It just takes a second,' Rowe said. 'In Walmart, it panics me when my kid walks around the clothing and I can't see him for a split second, because you never know when that person is just watching or there or how long they've been watching you or what their intentions are in their head.' Rowe said the people who currently live at Lincks' old home have young children. She said her kids have played at the home and ride the bus to school together with them. Amid the questions that still loom about Nick's disappearance three decades later, Rowe extends her deepest condolences to her mother, Colleen Nick. 'It makes me feel bad because there's no closure for her parents,' Rowe said. 'They have a hole in their hearts.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
NWS releases new details about Van Buren tornados on June 6
VAN BUREN, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — New details have been released about the EF1 tornado that hit Van Buren on June 6, as well as two other brief tornados in the area. According to the National Weather Service, the tornado touched down at 7:46 a.m. on June 6 near South 4th Street and Wood Street, lasting about one minute as it moved northeast before dissipating near the Baptist Health-Van Buren complex Peak winds were estimated between 95 and 105 mph. The storm damaged a commercial building and multiple homes along Ozier Street, Mulberry Street and South 19th Street. Two homes experienced structural damage when high winds blew in windowed walls, causing one to lose its entire roof and another to lose a large portion of its roof, according to the NWS report. Van Buren tornado from June 6 rated EF-1, 2 other brief tornadoes reported One person was injured during the storm, but no fatalities were reported. The confirmed EF-1 tornado was the first in a sequence. A second tornado developed from the same area of rotation just minutes later, causing damage east of Van Buren. Survey teams are also evaluating a third area of interest near the Port of Van Buren. Read the full report here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Tornadoes strike as 35 million brace for severe storms
Over 24 tornadoes have been reported over the past 24 hours as severe storms move from Texas and across the East Coast. Authorities in Van Buren, Arkansas, say at least 50 structures were damaged.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
Van Buren tornado from Friday morning rated EF-1
VAN BUREN, Ark. – A tornado that damaged buildings in Van Buren Friday morning was rated an EF-1, according to the National Weather Service. National Weather Service officials also said that two other brief tornadoes appear to have also occurred, but further information on those has not yet been released. Over 11,000 Arkansans without power after Saturday morning storms The EF-1 tornado was seen just south of Shibley in Van Buren, where the damage was confirmed. This is a developing story, more information is expected to be released Saturday evening. Please check back for updates. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
