Suspect found hiding in cotton field in New Madrid County

NEW MADRID, Mo. — A suspect was taken into custody after law enforcement officers discovered him hiding in a cotton field.

According to New Madrid County (Missouri) Sheriff Bud Cooper, on Tuesday an officer with the New Madrid County Sheriff's Office was assisting the Malden (Missouri) Police Department in the pursuit of a vehicle driven by Mark Parks. Parks had outstanding felony warrants from Dunklin County, Missouri.

The vehicle pursuit ended when Parks's vehicle caught on fire at the intersection of County Road 248 and Route J, just north of Gideon, Missouri. However, Parks fled from the vehicle into a cornfield off of the county road, authorities said.

After a brief search, deputies located Parks crawling in a nearby cotton field, and he was taken into custody.

Assisting the Sheriff's Office personnel in the arrest, in addition to the Malden Police Department, were the police departments from Gideon and Portageville, Missouri, the Dunklin County (Missouri) Sheriff's Office and the state Highway Patrol.