Prosecutors seek death penalty against Baker for murder of Springdale man

Reginaldd Baker
Reginaldd Baker

FAYETTEVILLE -- Prosecutors in Washington County this week filed notice they'll seek the death penalty against a Missouri man accused of killing a man from Springdale last year and leaving his body in the woods.

Reginald Larue Baker, 41, of Seligman, Mo., and Daniel Paul Blanks, 44, of Fort Smith are accused of killing Richard Phillips, 39, on Nov. 23, 2021, because they believed he had sexually abused a girl they knew when she was 6 years old, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

Both men are charged with capital murder, kidnapping and residential burglary. Capital murder is punishable by the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole. Kidnapping is punishable by 10 to 40 years or life in prison.

Both men have pleaded innocent.

Hunters discovered Phillips' body Nov. 28, 2021, in the Mark Twain National Forest in Barry County, Mo., according to the affidavit.

Police determined Phillips died in Springdale, so the case is being prosecuted in Washington County.

The girl told Baker and Blanks about the abuse at a birthday party in October 2021, the affidavit says. Baker became angry, grabbed a knife from the kitchen and wanted to kill Phillips at the party, it says. The girl said she was able to calm Baker down and asked him not to hurt Phillips.

Springdale police were called around 8:15 p.m. Nov. 23, 2021, for a welfare check by a woman who said she could hear people fighting in a nearby apartment, according to a Police Department news release.

Officers talked to a man in the apartment who said he was there "hanging out" with Phillips when a group of men arrived. The man told police Phillips and the men began to argue and then fought. The men took Phillips from the apartment and left the area, the man told police.

Springdale police issued an alert for Phillips after they found a trail of blood leading from his apartment through the complex's parking lot at 1252 Cooper Drive, according to the news release.

Baker and Blanks were arrested Nov. 26, 2021, in Tulsa. Police used security camera video from Phillips' Springdale apartment parking lot to identify a pickup they say was used to take Phillips away.

Phillips' body was nude, and he had been badly beaten and shot several times, according to the affidavit.

Baker and Blanks were transported from Tulsa to the Washington County jail, where they are being held without bail.

  photo  Daniel Blanks
 
 


Upcoming Events