Convicted sex offender arrested after establishing camp near school
FORT PAYNE, Ala. – On Monday, April 7th, the Dekalb County Sheriff’s Office SRO assigned to Collinsville School received a tip that a convicted sex offender had been seen on school grounds after hours, possibly using school buses for shelter. The Dekalb County Criminal Investigation Unit was then notified of the tip and began an investigation into the matter.
At approximately 10:45pm that same night, Investigators along with the Collinsville SRO, Deputies, and members of Collinsville Police Department conducted a search of the area where the subject had been seen. A campsite was discovered in a heavily wooded area near the school and the subject was found at that campsite. The subject was identified as Kenneth Earl Phillips (67 of Collinsville). Phillips is a convicted sex offender stemming from a Rape 1st conviction in 1992 in St. Clair County. Phillips had recently been registering as “Homeless”.
The property where Phillips had established a campsite was owned by the City of Collinsville, and Phillips was arrested on view for Criminal Trespass 3rd by Collinsville Police Department.
Investigators determined that the campsite was located less than 600 feet from Collinsville School’s property line, and less than 1000 feet from the nearest school building. On April 8th a warrant was obtained by Investigators for a SORNA Violation due to Phillips failing to comply with code 15-20A-11 by establishing a residence less than 2000 feet from a school. Phillips was arrested by Deputies at Collinsville Police Department and transported to the Dekalb County Detention Center where he is currently being held.
DeKalb County Sheriff Nick Welden said of the incident: “I am glad that through the hard work of our Criminal Investigations Unit, Collinsville SRO and Collinsville PD, we were able to locate this individual before any other incident could occur. Please be vigilant and know your surroundings at all times so when you see something out of the ordinary, you will know. And never hesitate to call if you think something criminal is going on.”
“God Bless!” Concluded Sheriff Welden.
