A Little Update and Speculation
Some not surprised by bounty hunter's arrest
By the PDH
Published: Saturday, February 13, 2010 9:06 PM CST
Some residents in Carlsbad, N.M., weren’t surprised to hear that one of their own was arrested for murder in Plainview on Tuesday night.
Bounty hunter Jarrod Neil Flaming, 41, was charged for the murder of 31-year-old Derek Graves, who was wanted on drug charges out of Amarillo.
"We knew it was coming," one Carlsbad resident, who requested anonymity, said in a phone interview. "We expected it at any time. We really thought he would shoot someone here just clowning around."
Online discussions also have made Flaming out to be a person obsessed with wanting to be a part of law enforcement.
"He’s dangerous because he desperately wanted to be this officer type of person," the Carlsbad caller, who has known Flaming for about nine years, said. "I guess he finally carried it to the extreme in Plainview."
The resident, who formerly worked as an EMT in New Mexico, mentioned instances where Flaming showed up attempting to apprehend people who were in need of medical assistance.
The man said they were attempting to arouse a woman who was unconscious when Flaming appeared on the scene demanding to take the girl into custody. The EMTs were forced to call Carlsbad police so they could provide the woman with medical care.
The caller also said Flaming would strut around community events showing off his gun.
"It’s like he wanted everyone to know he’s got it," he said.
Flaming is president and CEO of Bad Dog Bail Bonds, Inc., in Carlsbad. He and his partner, who sources have identified as Morgan Moore, were in Plainview attempting to find Graves, who had skipped out on a Potter County warrant for possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance.
According to reports, Moore knocked on the door of an apartment at Central Apartments, 910 W. 28th, where Graves was temporarily staying just before 8:30 p.m. Tuesday and was allowed in by the resident.
When Moore attempted to take Graves into custody, he reportedly jumped out the kitchen window where Flaming was waiting. Graves then fled on 29th Street and into the backyard of a residence at 1111 W. 29th where he was found by officers with one gunshot wound from a 9mm handgun.
Police still are not sure why Flaming shot Graves, Plainview Police Captain Manuel Balderas said, or why he shot off several other rounds with his gun.
Witnesses said they heard as many as 10 shots being fired.
Balderas said that Flaming and his company were not authorized with the correct licenses to come to Texas from New Mexico and apprehend Graves.
In Texas, bounty hunters must be licensed through the Department of Public Safety, and Flaming was not, Balderas said.
DPS officials are conducting their own investigation, and additional charges could be filed against Flaming and Moore.
Police also are working to confirm the authenticity of Flaming’s licenses in New Mexico, Balderas said Friday morning.
Flaming remained in jail on a $75,000 bond Saturday.
( He has since posted bail and is out of custody.)
(Contact Kevin Lewis at 806-296-1353 or
kwlewis@hearstnp.com)
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