Oran man jailed on statutory rape, burglary, other charges

BENTON, Mo. — An Oran, Missouri, man was jailed on several felony charges, including statutory rape and burglary, after a traffic stop Thursday night in Scott County.

According to Scott County Sheriff Wes Drury, James Griswell, 22, is charged with the felonies of two counts of statutory rape, failure to register as a sex offender, first-degree burglary and misdemeanor charges of possession of a defaced firearm, resisting or interfering with arrest, second-degree endangering the welfare of a child, possession of less than 10 grams of marijuana and second-degree property damage.

Drury stated at 3:21 p.m. Thursday, a Scott County detective was on patrol when he saw Griswell operating a motor vehicle near County Road 261 and Main Street in Oran. Inside the vehicle, Griswell was accompanied by a woman and a child in the back seat.

The detective knew Griswell had charges pending for failing to register as a sex offender and made a traffic stop on County Road 261 just north of Oran. During the stop, Griswell fled on foot and deputies began a search that lasted about two hours.

While searching several buildings and tree lines, the sheriff’s office received a call a man matching the description of Griswell was seen running across a field and entered a garage of a residence.

While in the garage, Griswell knocked on the back door of the residence that was occupied, and the homeowner did not open the door. Griswell then pulled down an attic ladder in the garage and climbed into the attic. Scott County deputies went to the residence and found Griswell hiding in the attic under insulation. He was taken into custody without incident.

During the search of Griswell’s vehicle at the scene of the stop, deputies found a loaded 9 mm semi-automatic handgun with a defaced serial number. Deputies also found a plastic bag containing less than 10 grams of a leafy substance that field-tested positive for marijuana.

Detectives spoke with the passenger in Griswell’s vehicle, and she said she and Griswell had been driving and talking while smoking marijuana. She said the child was inside the car while the pair were smoking marijuana.

The sheriff’s office also received information Griswell was the suspect in an alleged statutory rape that occurred March 3 in Morley, Missouri. Griswell was interviewed about the incident and confessed to having contact with the victim and also having contact with the victim in February.

Griswell was arrested and taken to the Scott County Jail, where he is being held on a $50,000 cash or surety bond for the statutory-rape charges. He also is being held on a $10,000 cash bond for failing to register as a sex offender, burglary and the other charges.

Pertinent address:

County Road 261 and Main Street, Oran, Mo.