Four Arrested Following Antelope County Manhunt

A “great community effort” led to the arrests of four individuals following an 18-hour manhunt in Antelope County over the weekend.

Antelope County Sheriff Bob Moore praised multiple law enforcement agencies, firefighters and the media for assisting with a manhunt and subsequent arrest of that suspect — Jordan M. Roepke, 21 — and three others during the search. All are now being held at the Antelope County Law Enforcement Center.

“I praise our small community at the end of the day,” Moore said. “We thank our newspapers for getting the information out right away, and the Neligh Fire Department for their assistance in a situation that wasn’t fire and rescue. They allowed us to use their thermal imaging cameras to drive the roads and look into the ditches to recognize heat sources. It was an all-around great community effort to assist us.”

Moore said the 18-hour situation began with excellent police work by one of his deputies and a Neligh Police officer in recognizing Roepke as having a warrant for his arrest from the Nebraska Department of Corrections for a parole violation. While Roepke was on county grounds, he was not in police custody when he fled on foot.

Neligh Police Mike Wright and Joe McNally search the Elkhorn River area around midnight as they look for Jordan M. Roepke. (Carrie Pitzer/ACN)

Around 2 p.m. Sunday, Moore said 18-year-old Martail Edward entered the Antelope County Law Enforcement Center to receive property that an inmate was releasing, including car keys and such. Officers at the jail recognized the second subject who entered the building as Roepke. Dispatch ran Roepke’s information and confirmed there was an arrest warrant for a parole violation from the Nebraska Department of Corrections.

A Neligh Police officer and Antelope County Sheriff's deputy attempted to confront Roepke outside of the law enforcement center. As Roepke exited the vehicle, he then fled. A taser was deployed and Roepke was struck but fought through to continue running toward Antelope Memorial Hospital. Officers pursued on foot and Roepke continued toward the downtown district, where officers lost sight of him.

“I was surprised there wasn’t a stolen vehicle during the manhunt,” Moore said. “I thought all along someone would have called about a pickup or car being gone. We had four-wheelers on the Cowboy Trail and the only reason we didn’t have aerial assistance was the low ceiling from the clouds. We had aircraft volunteered to go up to assist.”

A manhunt ensued over the next 18 hours with multiple sightings in Neligh and along Highway 275 overnight. Roepke was spotted near the Antelope County Courthouse lawn at 3:23 p.m. as officers in vehicles and ATVs searched the downtown and east side of Neligh. 

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Neligh Police Officer Joe McNally searches Farmers Pride on Sunday, looking for Jordan M. Roepke. (Jessy Hilkemeier/ACN)

Antelope County Sheriff, Neligh Police and Nebraska State Patrol officers continued canvasing Neligh, knocking on doors and asking people if they had seen Roepke. Several sightings were reported between 8:30 p.m. and and 9:25 p.m., including a Neligh woman who said he approached her asking to use her telephone. 

The woman called 911, and a perimeter was set along 4th Street as law enforcement searched the area. The perimeter was lifted around 9:55 p.m., but officers continued watching the area. At about 11 p.m., a motorist reported seeing a man matching Roepke's description attempting to flag down traffic near the Elkhorn River between Neligh and Oakdale.

Members of the Sheriff’s Department, Nebraska State Patrol and Neligh Police spent about an hour searching the river area, along with Spud's Trucking, to no avail. About an hour after that search ended, Mike Flood of News Channel Nebraska spotted someone matching Roepke's description walking in the north ditch along Highway 275 between the Elkhorn River and Oakdale, across from Ag Agronomy.

Flood immediately called 911 and Sheriff Moore and Chief Wright responded to search the area. The two law enforcement leaders spent another two hours canvassing the area before ending that search around 3:15 a.m. 

At 6:40 a.m., Moore said Roepke was arrested without incident at mile marker 53 on Highway 275, one mile west of Tilden.

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Neligh Police Chief Mike Wright searches the ditch and trees along the highway at Oakdale across from the Cedar Creek on Monday morning. Antelope County Sheriff Bob Moore is driving the pickup and shining lights. (Carrie Pitzer/ACN)

Other Arrests
An investigation of the vehicle Roepke exited while at the Antelope County Law Enforcement Center led to the arrest of three other individuals --  Shaelynn Palmer, 20; Martrail Edward,18; and a juvenile female. During the search, officers recovered marijuana, alcohol and wax from the vehicle. They are being held pending charges.

During an evening search at one of Roepke’s known addresses in rural Antelope County — 85748 531st Ave. — another individual was arrested. Along with the Antelope County Sheriff’s Department, officers from the Nebraska State Patrol, Pierce County Sheriff, Plainview Police and Neligh Police, responded after learning a male located in the home who refused to exit the house.

Officers entered the home and located Bo McGraw, 31, in the upstairs bedroom. He resisted arrest and subsequently was subdued by officers. He was transported to the Antelope County Law Enforcement Center, where he was identified as having escaped from the Nebraska Department of Corrections and had an arrest warrant issued for him. He is now being held at the Antelope County Law Enforcement Center.

McGraw escaped on March 16, according to the Department of Corrections. He was serving a 4 1/2 year sentence for delivery of meth (felony), carrying a concealed weapon (misdemeanor) and possession of a controlled substance - meth (felony).

“A lot of agencies were involved and we thank them for their assistance and cooperation,” Moore said. “We appreciate how well the Neligh Police and Nebraska State Patrol work with our department.”

He went on to commend the agencies for their teamwork and willingness to assist in the manhunt. 

“It was great having Plainview and Pierce at the home in rural Antelope County because we thought maybe it was Jordan there hiding. We didn’t know who the male individual was, so we appreciated their assistance.”

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