Ex-police chief accused of theft
$63,718 in Flippin city funds stolen, misused, affidavit says
A former Flippin police chief facing a theft charge is accused in recently released court documents of stealing more than $63,000 from city funds.
Ronald Dustin “Dusty” Smith, 38, faces one count of theft of property in an amount more than $25,000, a Class C felony, according to the affidavit filed Thursday in Marion County Circuit Court.
Smith’s initial charge had estimated the value of stolen property as being more than $5,000 but less than $25,000.
Smith took $63,718.84 from the city of Flippin on or before Oct. 23, according to filings. On Oct. 23, a special agent with the Arkansas State Police received a letter from Marion County Prosecuting Attorney David Ethredge requesting an investigation into misuse of funds by a city employee.
A part-time records keeper at Flippin City Hall detailed for authorities the reported misuse of city funds Nov. 3.
The affidavit says Smith misused about $8,147.91 in city funds through credit card expenses between December 2016 and October 2017.
Smith did not turn in receipts for his spending and
used the city’s credit cards affiliated with U.S. Bank and First Security Bank for unauthorized personal items, according to records.
Marion County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Kenford Carter subpoenaed Smith’s personal banking accounts Nov. 21 for records and transactions from Jan. 1, 2015, through late December 2017. An audit was conducted Dec. 27.
Records show that Smith was booked into the Marion County jail around 10:40 a.m. Nov. 27 and was released 10 minutes later on a $5,000 bond.
Smith stepped down as police chief in 2016 but continued to work for the Police Department after the city paid $20,000 to settle a lawsuit, The Associated Press reported.
That settlement stemmed from a man who claimed he had been falsely arrested and that his home had been unlawfully searched.
Smith has a pretrial appearance scheduled for Feb. 14. His trial is scheduled for May 4, according to court records.