U.S. Marshals Arrest Adair Escapee

Fayetteville, AR – U.S. Marshals in Fayetteville, Arkansas have arrested Frank Potter. Potter escaped from the Adair County Jail in Oklahoma on May 2nd.

Authorities in Adair County say Potter climbed over a fence to escape. He then went to a woman's house nearby and demanded a vehicle, taking a red 4-door Nissan pickup truck. He was last seen on the Oklahoma-Arkansas border near Washington County. Adair County says he was in jail for possessing a firearm and that Potter has a violent history and should be considered armed and dangerous.

The U.S. Marshals in Eastern Oklahoma were asked to assist in tracking down Potter shortly after his escape and have been working closely with state and local agencies since that time. Information was developed early in the investigation that Potter had fled to Arkansas and was in the Siloam Springs and Fayetteville area. U.S. Marshals in Fayetteville began looking for Potter on the night of his escape and finally tracked him down to an apartment complex in Fayetteville on the evening of May 5th. With the assistance of the Fayetteville Police Department and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, Potter was found hiding in an attic at the apartment and was taken into custody without incident. The U.S. Marshals Service in Eastern Oklahoma was instrumental throughout this investigation, leading the fugitive initiative. The arrest would not have been possible without the incredible collaboration from all law enforcement partners.

Potter will be transferred back to the Adair County Jail where he is now facing more charges for escape, theft of a vehicle, and breaking and entering.

The U.S. Marshals Service is the federal government’s primary agency for fugitive investigations. The United States Marshals has the most broad arrest authority among all federal law enforcement agencies. They provide assistance to state and local agencies in locating and apprehending their most violent fugitives. In 2014, the U.S. Marshals arrested over 104,000 fugitives nationwide.