On 7/4/16, at approximately 9:53 PM, officers with the Benton Police Department responded to the Ralph Bunche Park on report of shots possibly being fired in the area. Officers were unable to locate any evidence of criminal activity at the time and no suspects were named.
On 7/6/16, at approximately 4:30 PM, detectives responded to the area of Valley St. in reference to a criminal mischief call. After speaking with the victims in the case, it was determined somebody had fired shots at their home while they were away and that it was tied into the previous shots fired call at Ralph Bunche Park.
Detectives worked diligently on the case and they determined there were two suspects involved in the case. The suspects were identified as Jonathon Cox (24 YOA) and Robert Higgs (47 YOA), both of Benton. Based on evidence and information that detectives obtained, both suspects were taken into custody without incident. Cox and Higgs are both charged with 18 counts of Aggravated Assault and 1 count of Possession of a Firearm by Certain Persons (Felon). There are 18 counts of Aggravated Assault due to the number of individuals in close proximity to the shooting scene.
Both Cox and Higgs are both active parolees out of the Arkansas Department of Community Corrections. Cox received a $150,000 bond and Higgs received a $100,000 bond as a result of this arrest. The high bond and quick resolution of this very dangerous criminal activity was possible with the great cooperation between our agency and probation/parole, Benton District Court, and the Saline County Prosecutor’s Office. This is still an active investigation and additional charges could be possible.
Chief Kirk Lane stated, “This very violent situation was able to be resolved in a timely manner due to the cooperation of various agencies working together for the safety of our community. Due to the hard work and dedication of all those involved, we were able to solve four of the five recent shooting incidents that have taken place.”
Anyone with information about this crime is encouraged to contact the Benton Police Department at 501-778-1171 or 501-315-TIPS. Individuals also may send us an anonymous crime tip about this incident to CRIMES (274637) with the keyword BNPD in the body of the text or go to www.crimereports.com to leave a tip. A crime tip can also be submitted via the official Benton Police Department app found on ITunes and Google Play. Any suspects listed are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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