Devil in the Ozarks

General 4 Minutes

I found this story on The Epoch Times site, originally on the Associated Press site:

There are plenty of hideouts in the rugged terrain of the Ozark Mountains, from abandoned cabins and campsites in vast forests where searchers are hunting for an ex-lawman known as the “Devil in the Ozarks.” Others are not only off the grid but beneath it, in the hundreds of caves that lead to vast subterranean spaces.

Fugitive Grant Hardin “knows where the caves are,” said Darla Nix, a cafe owner in Pea Ridge, Arkansas, whose sons grew up around him. Nix, who describes Hardin as a survivor, remembers him as a “very, very smart” and mostly quiet person.

For the searchers, “caves have definitely been a source of concern and a point of emphasis,” said Rand Champion, a spokesman for the Arkansas Department of Corrections.

“That’s one of the challenges of this area — there are a lot of places to hide and take shelter, a lot of abandoned sheds, and there are a lot of caves in this area, so that’s been a priority for the search team,” Champion said. “It adds to the challenge of a search in this area, for sure.”

Hardin, the former police chief in the small town of Gateway near the Arkansas-Missouri border, was serving lengthy sentences for murder and rape. He was the subject of the TV documentary “Devil in the Ozarks.”

He escaped Sunday from the North Central Unit — a medium-security prison also known as the Calico Rock prison — by impersonating a corrections officer “in dress and manner,” according to a court document. A prison officer opened a secure gate, allowing him to leave the facility.

Authorities have been using canines, drones and helicopters to search for Hardin in the rugged northern Arkansas terrain, Champion said. The sheriffs of several counties across the Arkansas Ozarks had urged residents to lock their homes and vehicles and call 911 if they notice anything suspicious.

In some ways, the terrain is similar to the site of one of the most notorious manhunts in U.S. history. Bomber Eric Rudolph, described by authorities as a skilled outdoorsman, evaded law officers for years in the Appalachian Mountains of western North Carolina. It was a five-year manhunt that finally ended in 2003 with his capture.

Rudolph knew of many cabins in the area owned by out-of-town people, and he also knew of caves in the area, former FBI executive Chris Swecker, who led the agency’s Charlotte, North Carolina, office at the time, said in the FBI’s historical account of the case.

“I think it is very likely that he not only had campsites and caves, but he was also spending some time in those cabins,” Swecker said. “He was anticipating a great conflict and he had clearly lined up caves and campsites where he could go,” he added.

Rudolph pleaded guilty to federal charges associated with four bombings in Georgia and Alabama, including one in Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta during the 1996 Olympic Games.

There are more than 2,000 documented caves in northern Arkansas, state officials say. Many of them have entrances only a few feet wide that are not obvious to passersby, said Michael Ray Taylor, who has written multiple books on caves, including “Hidden Nature: Wild Southern Caves.”

The key is finding the entrance, Taylor said.

“The entrance may look like a rabbit hole, but if you wriggle through it, suddenly you find enormous passageways,” he said.

Local residents might discover some caves as teenagers, so a fugitive would want to choose one that deputies in the search didn’t also discover as teens, Taylor said.

It would be quite possible to hide out underground for an extended period, but “you have to go out for food, and you’re more likely to be discovered,” he said.

Hardin pleaded guilty in 2017 to first-degree murder for the killing of James Appleton, 59. Appleton worked for the Gateway water department when he was shot in the head Feb. 23, 2017, near Garfield. Police found Appleton’s body inside a car. Hardin was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

He was also serving 50 years for the 1997 rape of an elementary school teacher in Rogers, north of Fayetteville.

He had been held in the Calico Rock prison since 2017.

SOURCE: THEEPOCHTIMES.COM (The story, from Associated Press, is dated 5/31/2025)

Devil in the Ozarks CAPTURED

How was Hardin caught, ending 12-day manhunt?

Authorities said tracking dogs picked up Hardin’s scent and were able to lead them to Hardin. Hundreds of law enforcement officers at the local, state and federal level spent nearly two weeks searching for Hardin, using dogs, drones and aircraft, at times hampered by severe weather.

Moccasin Creek where he was found has seen high water due to heavy rainfall in the last two weeks, which may have limited Hardin’s ability to move around. It also prevented authorities from finding him sooner. Champion said search teams had looked through the area before but couldn’t fully investigate because of the high water.

Though Hardin was previously thought to have left the state, Champion said investigators now believe he never got very far at all from the prison. He was fingerprinted and assessed at the North Central Unit before being moved to the Varner Unit, Champion said. He will be interviewed in the coming days.

SOURCE: USA TODAY

Unknown's avatar

Published by pat frederick

Published

155 thoughts on “Devil in the Ozarks”

  1. “Going down is easy, up is another matter”

    “The Faithful Beast”

    “A significant value in lures right there”

    “The steer is thinking, “Why me…?”

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Just The News: “The Federal Reserve on Wednesday held interest rates steady for the fifth consecutive meeting, amid pressure from President Trump to lower the rates. The central bank kept its benchmark lending rate at a range of 4.25% to 4.5%, which it has been since December, CNN reported.

    Federal Reserve officials want to wait a little longer to see how the economy is amid Trump’s trade war, but the president has repeatedly called out the bank on its wait-and-see strategy.

    Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell will hold a press conference on the central bank’s interest rate decision at 2:30 p.m. ET.”

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Just The News: “Former Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday announced that she will not run for California governor next year, ending months of speculation.

    The decision comes amid questions about her political future after she lost the 2024 presidential election to President Donald Trump. 

    “In recent months, I have given serious thought to asking the people of California for the privilege to serve as their governor,” Harris said in a statement, according to Politico. “I love this state, its people, and its promise. It is my home. But after deep reflection, I’ve decided that I will not run for Governor in this election.

    “I have extraordinary admiration and respect for those who dedicate their lives to public service – service to their communities and to our nation,” she continued. “At the same time, we must recognize that our politics, our government, and our institutions have too often failed the American people, culminating in this moment of crisis. As we look ahead, we must be willing to pursue change through new methods and fresh thinking — committed to our same values and principles, but not bound by the same playbook.”

    Harris did not state whether she intends to run for president in 2028, but said she will be spending time listening to voters and helping get other Democrats elected. 

    The former vice president added that she will share “more details” about her future plans in the coming months.”

    Liked by 1 person

  5. “Time to Get Involved — The Pediatric Bastards have Doubled Down are Going for your Kids. They want it ALL”

    Jimychanga, Jul 30, 2025

    BREAKING: The American Academy of Pediatrics is calling for the elimination of all non-medical vaccine exemptions for school attendance. No religious exemptions. No personal choice. Just compliance. This is a direct assault on parental rights and informed consent.

    Image

    https://x.com/drsimonegold/status/1949942157998969183

    ACTION DEFINES YOU

    Jimychanga · April 10, 2024

    ACTION DEFINES YOU

    This is what I ask or seek to learn about every professional I do business with.

    https://jimychanga.substack.com/p/action-defines-you

    “Imagine cigarette companies lobbying to make smoking mandatory. That’s what pediatricians are doing with vaccines. They get rich while your child gets seizures, allergies, autism—or dies. And they want to make refusing illegal. Nuremberg 2.0 can’t come fast enough.”

    https://substack.com/@drwojakmd/note/c-140067737

    Liked by 1 person

  6. UPS delivered my Amazon order and I’m finally taking a diuretic – hope it works!!! I also ordered some longer ace bandages for wrapping my legs – it seems to help a lot to wrap them overnight – they didn’t hurt nearly as much today!

    Liked by 1 person

  9. “A whole village balancing on a 50m cliff…

    This is Castellfollit de la Roca, a tiny village in Catalonia, Spain, built on a narrow basalt cliff over 50 meters high. The village stretches nearly 1 kilometer long, with houses sitting right on the edge. The cliff was formed by ancient lava flows, and people still live here today.

    It’s one of the most stunning and surreal places in Spain — like a real-life fantasy town. Would you dare to live here?“

    Liked by 1 person

  13. “‘Ultra-Processed’ Foods Could Hike Your Odds for Lung Cancer”

    HealthDay, WEDNESDAY, July 30, 2025

    EXCERPT: “Experts already know that high consumption of ultra-processed foods is bad news for your health, and new research suggests these foods can raise risks for a major killer: lung cancer. Besides the fact that ultra-processed foods are often high in salt, sugar and fat, people who consumed a lot of these foods also tended to avoid healthier, cancer-fighting fare, researchers noted.

    “Low consumption of minimally processed foods like fruits, vegetables, fish and whole grains was linked to increased lung cancer risk,” noted a team led by Yongzhong Wu of Chongqing Cancer Hospital, in Chongqing, China. They published their findings July 29 in the journal Thorax.

    Ultra-processed foods are made mostly from substances extracted from whole foods, like saturated fats, starches and added sugars. They also contain a wide variety of additives to make them more tasty, attractive and shelf-stable, including colors, emulsifiers, flavors and stabilizers. Examples include packaged baked goods, sugary cereals, ready-to-eat or ready-to-heat products and deli cold cuts.

    Consumption of ultra-processed foods has already been associated with 32 health problems, including heart disease, obesity, diabetes, some types of cancer and depression. The new study may add the leading cancer killer, lung cancer, to that list.

    Wu’s team looked at data from the US Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian (PLCO) Cancer Screening Trials. 

    The trials tracked cancer incidence and deaths between 1993 and 2018 for 155,000 older adults. About 102,000 of the participants filled out detailed dietary questionaires that categorized foods as: Unprocessed or minimally processed; containing processed culinary ingredients; processed; and ultra-processed.

    When it came to ultra-processed foods, the researchers focused particularly on sour cream, as well as cream cheese, ice cream, frozen yogurt, fried foods, bread, baked goods, salted snacks, breakfast cereals, instant noodles, shop-bought soups and sauces, margarine, confectionery, soft drinks, sweetened fruit drinks, restaurant/shop-bought hamburgers, hot dogs and pizza.

    On average, the American adults enrolled in the study consumed three servings of ultra-processed foods daily — most often lunch meats and sodas or diet sodas. Over an average follow-up of 12 years,1,706 new cases of lung cancer were diagnosed, Wu’s group noted……”

    https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2025-07-30/ultra-processed-foods-could-hike-your-odds-for-lung-cancer

    Liked by 1 person

Comments are closed.