Schell City man arrested on warrant for failure to register

Members of the Sheriff’s Office took a wanted fugitive into custody Wednesday afternoon after several days of searching. Sheriff’s officials said they had been on the search for Richard L. Covey, 57, of Schell City, since Monday when a warrant was issued for Covey charging him with failure to register as a sex offender.

According to Vernon County Sheriff Jason Mosher, Covey was a suspect from an incident that occurred over the weekend. Mosher said investigators were able to get a location on Covey early Wednesday. Multiple units then surrounded the area (near C Hwy. and Chouteau Road) and located Covey within a short amount of time. The Sheriff said a firearm was also located during the arrest.

“Mr. Covey was in possession of a firearm when we found him, so I am grateful we were able to take Covey into custody without anyone getting hurt,” said Mosher.      

Mosher said Covey is being held in the Vernon County Jail on the no-bond warrant and that additional charges may be filed when his office completes the investigation.