Sex offender arrested by Winslow Police Deptartment

In late January 2004, while on random patrol, an officer of the Winslow Police Department made a field contact with a person identified as 25-year-old Jason Michael Dunlap. A wants and warrant check identified as Dunlap as a convicted sex offender out of Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

As an offender, Dunlap has a responsibility is to register with the County Sheriff’s Office within 72 hours of moving to Arizona. Dunlap, who is believed to have relocated to Winslow a few weeks prior to this contact with Officer Scott Peterson, had yet failed to report his status as an offender to Navajo County or the Winslow Police Department.

Information of this contact was relayed to the WPD Criminal Investigations Division. Communication with North Carolina law enforcement authorities confirmed that Dunlap was under investigation for failing to register as a sex offender and failing to change his address upon moving out of county. With cooperation from the Winslow Police Department, Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office filed a request with their County Superior Court for a felony arrest warrant.

On February 3rd, the arrest warrant was signed and a copy sent to WPD.

Upon receipt of the warrant, Detectives went to Dunlap’s home but did not find him.

They then tried to locate him at his place of employment. Before he could be contacted, Dunlap fled the area.

He was later apprehended by WPD patrol officers at a business on the east end of town. It is believed that Dunlap was in the process of fleeing the Winslow area when he was arrested.

He was booked into the Navajo County jail in Holbrook on the warrant. Although Dunlap could be charged locally for his failure to register, a decision to decline local charges was made. North Carolina authorities are making arrangements to extradite Dunlap back to his home state to face charges.

A conviction for a sex offense results in the imposition of certain requirements by the state. The convicted person must register with the local Sheriff’s Office as a sex offender and provide a residential address where the offender plans to reside.

The offender is also required to obtain an Arizona driver’s license or identification card from the Department of Transportation on an annual basis. Other obligations can be found in the Arizona Revised Statutes, Title 13, Section 3821. The Arizona Department of Public Safety maintains a database of registered sex offenders, which can be accessed through the internet at www.sexoffenders.com.

The staff of the Winslow Police Department understands and accepts the responsibility entrusted to us by the citizens of this city to provide a safe living environment for all. We take this responsibility seriously and work hard every day to meet your expectations.

As sincere as we are about our commitment to you, we know the citizens are often the ones making the difference by phoning in tips and leads. To be truly effective, law enforcement must be a community wide effort.

If you have any information on any criminal activity, please call the Winslow Police Department’s Crime Stop number at 289-2100, or contact any member of the police department staff.

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