West Plains, MO. – A West Plains man was arrested last week following an incident that began with the theft of a car in July.
According to the probable cause statement, on July 21st, a woman reported to the Howell County Sheriff’s Office that Johnny Dixon was in possession of her car and would not return it. The victim told authorities that on July 19th, Dixon had threatened her and forced her to let him use her car but refused to return it after two days. Authorities noted she had an arm in a sling and, when asked about it, she stated that Dixon had broken her arm but she didn’t report it. She told authorities that Dixon had their two shared children at his residence and a third older juvenile who would babysit them.
The woman then called the older teen and asked her to take the children and the car to the Sheriff’s Office. While the 16-year-old girl attempted to leave the residence, Dixon hit the windshield of the vehicle with an object, spraying shattered glass into the vehicle. The three juveniles in the vehicle told authorities that it was Dixon who had hit the vehicle.
After arriving at the Sheriff’s Office and inside the building, Dixon was caught on camera stealing the vehicle from the Sheriff’s Office Parking Lot while wearing a tan coat and allergy mask. His mother told authorities that he had asked for a ride to the Dollar General near the Sheriff’s Office and she had given him a ride.
On the evening of July 21st, Dixon contacted the Sheriff’s Office to report he had abandoned the stolen vehicle behind a church in the Pomona area. While on the phone with dispatch, Dixon admitted he took the vehicle because he had to get his stuff out of the car and admitted to hitting the windshield of the car. The entire phone call was on a recorded line.
Johnny Dixon was arrested on September 1, 2023, on the charges of 2nd-degree property damage, stealing a motor vehicle, and three counts of endangering the welfare of a child. He was held in the Howell County Jail on a $10,000 bond and released the same day.
Dixon has a prior violent crime conviction for 2nd-degree Domestic Assault from an incident in 2010.
