Storage unit break-ins lead to arrest

The morning of Nov. 17, the Russellville Police Department was notified by the owners of one of the mini storage units in the city that several of their units had been broken into. After a brief investigation, officers were able to connect this report to an incident that occurred the night before, according to Sgt. Jake Tompkins.

Night shift patrol officers encountered a man the night of Nov. 16 walking around with items they suspected might be stolen. When they conferred with day shift officers the next day, they developed the man as a suspect and then happened to see him walking around that morning.

The suspect was James Earl King, 48.

“I was interviewing him around 9 a.m. or 10 a.m., and he told me he wanted to go back to prison,” Tompkins said.

Tompkins said King confessed to breaking into 17 mini storage units – seven at the first location and 10 at a second location.

Investigators were able to recover some of the stolen items from King, but Tompkins said he confessed to selling most of the items during the night to random people.

“He (King) said he was tired of begging and nobody helping him – but he won’t utilize the resources available to him,” Tompkins said.

King is currently being held in the Franklin County Jail, and his $25,000 bond is on hold. According to Tompkins, King was already out on bond for previous charges when this incident occurred.