Arkansas Grandmother Bomb Plot: Suspect Knew Victims
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ABC News(FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.) — Investigators have learned that the Arkansas man being held on suspicion of strapping what he called a bomb to a 73-year-old grandmother and forcing take money from her account is a longtime acquaintance of the woman’s husband.
Betty Davis, 73, walked into the local Arvest Bank in Fayetteville, Ark., around 10:30 a.m. Monday while her husband was tied up and held captive at their home. She told employees she had an explosive device strapped around her ankle.
Employees at the bank called 911 and police were soon able to remove the device from Davis without incident.
Paul Bradley was arrested on Wednesday in connection with the incident, according to Fayetteville Police Chief Greg Tabor. Police say Bradley, 60, is a longtime casual acquaintance of Dean Davis; the two met at a local restaurant, Rick’s Iron Skillet.
According to investigators, Bradley waited for Dean Davis to leave his home for his morning coffee — part of the man’s daily routine — before approaching the couple’s home.
“The suspect who we know as Mr. Bradley feigned injury to get Mrs. Davis to open her door, and that’s how this all begun,” Washington County Sheriff Tim Helder said.
Bradley was arrested on charges of aggravated robbery, two counts of kidnapping and aggravated burglary, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and the Fayetteville police.
“I was thinking it was someone I know from the way he talked. He’d have to know some things about me that I used to raise cattle, and to know when I left the café,” Dean Davis said as the couple appeared on ABC’s Good Morning America Friday.
Bradley tied up Dean Davis after he returned to the home, according to police. He then took a weapon from the home and strapped a fake bomb to Betty Davis’ leg, drove her to the Arvest bank and demanded she take $10,000 from her account.
Bradley allegedly told Davis that the device was a bomb, and even showed her a detonator. The bomb squad later determined the device was not an explosive.
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