“They know, boy,” — Hiland Break-in Ends in a Sagebrush Crash and a Long Chase

The original story by Greg Hirst for Oil City News.

Two Fremont County men are facing burglary and theft charges after investigators say they broke into a shuttered store in Hiland, took off in a van, and ultimately wrecked out in the sagebrush before trying to escape on foot — dogs in tow.

The suspects, David Franklin Daughtry and Joshua Paul Chapa-Allen, both 44, were arrested after Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers found them about three miles apart along the wide-open stretch of Highway 20/26 between Casper and Shoshoni, according to a probable-cause affidavit from the Natrona County Sheriff’s Office.

And the weirdest detail? While Daughtry was sitting in the back of a highway patrol unit, investigators say the trooper stepped out but left the in-car cage camera running. On that video, Daughtry is reportedly heard talking to his dog:

“They know, boy.”

Both men are presumed innocent unless proven guilty or they plead guilty.

According to investigators, cameras at the former Bright Spot convenience store caught two “thin” men on the property at 7:06 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 10 — one wearing a black beanie.

The store owner got alerted and drove out, where she says she found a white or silver van backed up to the building. What happened next, she told law enforcement, looked like a quick getaway in real time.

One man jumped in the van and backed up fast enough that she had to reverse and swing her vehicle out of the way. The second suspect reportedly ran around the building and hopped in, and then the van bolted west onto US 20/26.

The owner said she followed the van for almost an hour.

The chase got dangerous, according to the affidavit. At one point, the van reportedly blasted through a barbed-wire fence, then re-entered the highway and came charging toward her — forcing her to swerve to avoid a head-on crash.

Then, she said, the van turned west again. She followed it onto Frenchie Draw Road, where she noticed something fall out of the van. She kept going until the vehicle disappeared into the sagebrush.

After losing the van, the owner returned to the store and met with a deputy. The deputy documented a shattered window, tire marks, and a shoe print near a dirt bike.

On the store video, the deputy reportedly saw one of the suspects wheeling the dirt bike toward the van before it was abandoned.

Later, when a trooper detained Daughtry near the county line, the deputy asked for a photo of Daughtry’s shoe tread — and investigators say it matched the print found outside the store.

Meanwhile, a trooper found a car battery near Frenchie Draw Road — right where the owner said she saw something fall from the van. Store video reportedly shows the suspects moving a car battery while piling up items.

Deputies with the Fremont County Sheriff’s Office eventually located the van itself — reportedly wrecked in the sagebrush about a half-mile from the road, with barbed wire hanging off it. Investigators found Daughtry’s driver’s license inside, though they didn’t locate much else of immediate value.

The owner also reported additional tools and items missing. Combined with the battery, prosecutors allege the theft total was over $1,000, on top of burglary charges.

Investigators say Daughtry admitted he had been in possession of the van, but claimed it had been stolen the night before while he was in Casper — and that he had started walking back to Riverton.

Law enforcement wasn’t buying the timeline. The trooper and deputy reportedly noted that would mean an 80-mile walk in about 12 hours.

Then came the moment caught on camera: with Daughtry in the patrol unit and the recording still rolling, he reportedly told his dog, “They know, boy.”

The affidavit also notes a separate call later that evening — around 6:08 p.m. — when a trooper responded to reports of cows on the road and found about 100 feet of fence destroyed, valued at $500.

Both Daughtry and Chapa-Allen were charged Thursday before Judge Cynthia Sweet with burglary, theft, and property destruction.

Daughtry — identified as the alleged driver — also faces two counts of reckless endangerment, accused of driving toward the store owner twice and also allegedly putting his co-defendant at risk.

Bond was set at $15,000 cash or surety.

Chapa-Allen told the judge, “I’m not a burglar. This is all a big misunderstanding.” Daughtry also called the charges “a misunderstanding.”

Investigators also note Daughtry already faces separate Fremont County charges tied to an alleged Oct. 8 burglary.