• Suspect eluded authorities four days before arrest Friday at Licking area church.
A murder suspect who eluded authorities for parts of four days after killing one man and critically injuring another was arrested without incident Friday at a Licking area church.
The hunt for Daniel Glen Campbell, 39, of Licking, ended when he was apprehended at Faith and Hope Church, where his mother is the pastor. Authorities said she was not involved.
Campbell was the focus of regional law enforcement agencies beginning last Tuesday night when authorities said he killed Billy Dale Bishop II, 38, and critically injured William T. Dumboksi, 55, outside Dumboski’s home on Boiling Springs Road. Campbell was arraigned Monday morning at the Texas County Justice Center and held without bond.
The shootings set off a manhunt with multiple agencies to locate the gunman, who was nearly immediately connected to the crime. About 70 hours of searching ended around 5 p.m. Friday when an alert neighbor contacted the Texas County Sheriff’s Department.
“We got a call from a lady who lives close to the church who said the blinds on the front of the church were pulled,” Sigman said. “They’re never pulled.”
Sigman said deputies were positioned at the front and rear doorways of the church — just 2.6 miles from the shooting scene — awaiting backup when Campbell appeared.
“The back door cracked a little bit,” he said. “They started to get out of their vehicles, the door opened and he walked out.”
Campbell, who was on probation for a 2015 charge of first-degree tampering with a motor vehicle, faces five felony charges related to the shootings. The most severe is first-degree murder, where the maximum sentence is the death penalty or life in prison. He is also charged with first-degree assault causing serious physical injury, two counts of armed criminal action and unlawful possession of a firearm.
Authorities said Campbell had help in eluding them. Robert Lane, 37, of Licking, was charged Monday with hindering prosecution during the same arraignment hearing for Campbell. The two lived together at Lane’s residence on Paddy Creek Road. Lane is also held at the Texas County Jail without bond.
The manhunt for Campbell began the night of Oct. 25.
Around 7 p.m., witnesses said Campbell appeared out of the darkness with pistols in each hand at 15152 Boiling Springs Road, where Dumboski, Bishop and two females were outside. Campbell was wearing a blue bandana and made remarks saying he was an “outlaw,” Sigman said.
Campbell fired one shot at Dumboski, causing him to fall to the ground. He also fired one round at Bishop, striking him on the left side of the head. Campbell also shot both men while they were on the ground.
Bishop, 38, died at the scene, according to Texas County Coroner Tom Whittaker. Dumboski, 55, was airlifted to a Springfield hospital in critical condition. He was later released.
Sigman said Campbell’s parents lived next door and that Daniel Campbell would “stay there periodically.”
“There was a history with Dumboski and the Campbell family,” Sigman said. “It appears Bishop was at the wrong place at the wrong time.”
After shooting both men, Campbell went to Bishop’s truck in the driveway and placed a duffle bag of clothes inside. Campbell then returned to where the men had been shot and placed a pistol underneath the chin of one of the witnesses for several seconds.
The witnesses told authorities Campbell announced his name at the scene. They also identified him in a photograph.
Campbell stole Bishop’s 1997 Ford Ranger and fled. By 5 a.m. the next day, authorities — who were initially looking for Lane’s car that he claimed Campbell stole from his home — asked for the public’s assistance in finding the black truck with a distinct green grille and front bumper. It was discovered Thursday afternoon by a Missouri State Highway Patrol helicopter in a field about 200-300 yards behind Lane’s residence, which authorities focused on throughout the investigation. The only access to the area was through a gate on Lane’s property.
Sigman believes the helicopter was key in flushing out Campbell. There were media reports of an apparent sighting of the suspect in Arkansas, where Campbell allegedly made a threat against a man there. But Sigman believes the fugitive remained in Texas County the entire time.
“He never left the area or got very far away,” he said.
Lane was arrested Thursday when authorities searched his home after finding Campbell’s getaway vehicle on his property. Lane consented to a search of his residence, where officers found the duffel bag of clothes as well as a note from Campbell to Lane stating he was headed to Montana and instructing him to burn the message after reading it. Lane also admitted at that time that he was missing a .38-caliber revolver. He had denied missing any weapons the night of the shootings.
A K-9 team tracked Campbell’s scent from Lane’s car — found the night of the shootings on Paddy Chapel Road about two miles from his home — back to Lane’s residence.
Authorities ramped up their search for Campbell on Friday morning as a convoy of deputies with three ATVs left the justice center around 10 a.m. Mere hours later, the observant citizen provided the big break at the church that ended the manhunt.
Sigman said there is no evidence that Campbell received assistance at his mother’s church at 15450 Burnett Drive just off Highway 32 between Success and Licking. Carolyn Campbell is the pastor.
“We have no reason to believe at this point that she was involved,” Sigman said.
Daniel Campbell arrived at the Texas County Jail for processing at 9:30 p.m. Friday.
Sigman praised the assistance of multiple law enforcement agencies and citizens in the Success and Licking area. He said more details and charges may be coming.
“We’ve already got a good case, and the bad guy is behind bars,” Sigman said, “but we still have some work to do.”