Slates gets five years probation in kidnapping caper

On Tuesday afternoon, Roy A. Slates, 57, of Nevada was given a suspended sentence of five years of court-supervised probation in the strange kidnapping case that landed five local men in jail. Slates pleaded guilty to the felonies of concealing a felony and hindering prosecution.

Presiding 28th Circuit Judge James R. Bickel told Slates and his attorney Brandon Fisher that he thought a suspended sentence was fitting because Bickel had never seen such a high score on the Sentencing Assessment Report.

Slates received a score of seven on the report. The higher the score on the report, the greater the chances that individual has of completing a successful period of probation. Prosecutor Lynn M. Ewing III agreed with Bickel, saying he had never seen such a high score either. Ewing said that he thought the suspension of the sentence was "appropriate" considering the time it may take to bring the complicated case to a close.

Slates appeared before Bickel on Oct. 4 and entered guilty pleas to the charges, which are connected to the bizarre kidnapping case that left northern Vernon County resident Charles Scammell shot and a New Jersey pet food dealer kidnapped and forcibly brought to Missouri. Slates had already appeared in a New Jersey courtroom where he pleaded guilty to second degree conspiracy to commit theft by extortion on Dec. 16, 2010. Slates was released on a personal recognizance bond and has agreed to make himself available to New Jersey authorities any time they need him to assist them in further prosecutions. Slates still faces the possibility of 10 years in prison on the New Jersey charges. He will be sentenced when the other cases are concluded.

Slates and the other four men in the case were all extradited to New Jersey to face charges in the case that began with a home invasion in northern Vernon County in November 2009. Three of the men involved in the case then drove to New Jersey in January 2010 and kidnapped Jeffrey Muller of Newton, and were bringing him back to Missouri when their car broke down and Muller escaped.

Douglas Stangeland of Nevada, Andrew Wadel and Lonnie Swarnes of Rich Hill, were arrested in Lake Ozark, and their interrogation led to the arrest of William Barger of Nevada, and, eventually, to Slates' arrest.

In July 2011, Wadel was sentenced to 18 years in a New Jersey prison for his part in the kidnapping. Wadel pleaded guilty to kidnapping and lesser charges and he admitted to using a stun gun to subdue Muller.

Stangeland and Swarnes were offered similar deals by prosecutors but they declined. Barger has not been offered a deal at this point. All three men remain in custody in New Jersey. Stangeland and Swarnes are being held in the Sussex County jail, and Barger is being held in a separate New Jersey lockup.

Bickel also ordered Slates to pay court costs and contribute to the crime victim's fund. Bickel granted Slates permission to travel since he is working out of state. Court supervised subjects must gain permission to travel as part of the probation. Slates and his attorney Brandon Fisher both declined comment after the court proceeding.