FC Police Officer arrested for theft, abuse of public trust
A Forrest City Police Officer has been arrested on charges that he stole money from a suspect he chased into a local neighborhood in March.
Cannon Carl, 26, was arrested by Arkansas State Police on Tuesday and booked into the St. Francis County Jail on felony charges of theft of property, hindering apprehension and abuse of public trust.
The charges stem from a vehicle pursuit on March 6, when Carl attempted to stop a vehicle driven by Jaqwan Norris, 19. Norris reportedly drove into the Beech Grove neighborhood and abandoned the vehicle in front of his residence at 716 Laughrun Dr., before fleeing on foot.
Shortly after the incident, Norris alleged Carl searched the vehicle without permission and stole $10,000 in cash from the console of his Chevrolet Impala during the search.
Norris told police he let his family know after he fled that night that there was $10,000 in the center console. He told police he received the money from buying and selling cars and provided two bills of sale that totaled the amount stolen, according to reports.
Norris’s father, Akira Brandon Norris, 38, told investigators that after his son told him about the money, he asked officers about it. He claimed that although Carl admitted there was money in the vehicle, he would not allow Norris to get the money.
Norris claimed Carl turned off his body camera and asked him to walk down the street with him at which time he handed him two phones and a driver’s license belonging to Jaqwan Norris. Norris claims Carl told him to “let his son Jaqwan know that he owes him one.” Another officer gave Norris a third cell phone later that night.
During the investigation, officers reviewed footage from Carl’s body camera that had been turned on and off during the incident, according to reports. The footage reportedly showed money in a plastic bag inside the vehicle before the camera went black. However, the camera continued to record Carl searching the vehicle and investigators said they could hear him make a “yes type humming gesture while searching.” A few minutes later, the footage shows Carl “throwing loose change and currency” inside the vehicle before walking back to his patrol car.
Officers told investigators that Carl went home to change his pants following the incident, “although all the officers that came to the scene had mud on their pants.”
The vehicle was towed that night, and when the tow truck driver arrived at the shop to unload it, the Norrises were waiting on him, according to the report. After showing proof of ownership, the vehicle was released to Jaqwan Norris.
The Norrises and the city’s police department have a lengthy history.
Brandon Norris was killed earlier this month in a shooting outside his residence on Laughrun Drive.
Since that time, Jaqwan Norris has been named by police as a suspect in shootings that occurred after his father’s murder.
(Continued from Page 1) Police said warrants carrying a $1 million bond had been issued for his arrest on charges of discharging a weapon from a vehicle, second-degree criminal mischief and two counts of aggravated assault. He also has five cases pending in St. Francis County Circuit Court, ranging from robberies to assaults and misdemeanors dating back to 2019.
Carl’s bond was set at $100,000 and he has been released from custody.
City officials today would not comment on the case.