JONESBORO, Ark. — A West Memphis man linked through DNA evidence to the theft of more than $62,000 in air conditioning equipment from a Jonesboro construction site has been sentenced to five years in prison as part of a negotiated plea agreement.
Emanual Dytrel Steele, 37, pleaded guilty Tuesday, Aug. 11, to an amended charge of theft of property valued between $5,000 and $25,000, a Class C felony, according to a sentencing order filed in Craighead County Circuit Court.
Circuit Judge Scott Ellington sentenced Steele to five years in the Arkansas Division of Correction. Steele received credit for 369 days already spent in custody. The order also imposed a five-year suspended sentence and required Steele to pay $1,000 in restitution, along with fines, court costs and fees.
A commercial burglary charge was nolle prossed, meaning prosecutors declined to pursue it, as part of the plea agreement.
Steele was originally charged with commercial burglary, a Class C felony, and theft of property valued at $25,000 or more, a Class B felony. The theft charge was reduced before he entered his guilty plea.
The charges stemmed from the Sept. 6, 2023, theft of air conditioning equipment from a construction site at 3315 Stadium Blvd., where a new car lot was being built.
According to a Jonesboro Police Department probable cause affidavit, officers were dispatched to the site at about 7:45 a.m. after the construction foreman discovered that multiple pieces of equipment were missing.
The stolen property included seven York air conditioning compressors, eight Fraser-Johnson air conditioning coils and seven Fraser-Johnson furnace units. Police estimated the equipment’s total value at $62,342.
Officers found blood droplets in the area where the equipment had been removed, along with disconnected components left at the scene. Investigators collected swabs of the blood and submitted them to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory for testing.
Police said they received the laboratory results on Feb. 18, 2026, showing a positive DNA match to Steele.
Investigators obtained Steele’s telephone number through his probation officer and spoke with him several times while attempting to arrange an interview. Steele agreed to appointments but failed to appear for each one, according to the affidavit.
Steele eventually went to the Jonesboro Police Department on March 30 after detectives contacted members of his family. During the interview, Steele acknowledged owning a white van referenced by investigators but said he had been working in Texas when the theft occurred. He also denied having performed work in Jonesboro or at the construction site.
When detectives told Steele that his DNA had been identified on blood evidence collected at the scene, he invoked his right to an attorney and the interview ended, according to police.
Steele was on parole at the time of the offense, according to the sentencing order. Deputy prosecutor Bryce Cook represented the state, and public defender Aarika Thompson represented Steele.
During his bond hearing, Judge David Boling noted in court that Steele had a long criminal history and was currently on parole. The judge also noted in court that Steele had said he should have run instead of turning himself in, which the judge said he considers when setting bond. During the hearing, Steele argued with the judge about that and other points, then repeated the same statement detectives alleged he had made about believing he should not have turned himself in. The judge replied, telling him good luck.
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