Fairbury Man Charged with Stalking in Fillmore County

A Fairbury man was arrested in Fillmore County for stalking, an offense for which he has previously been convicted.David L. Beetley, age 63, is currently charged with stalking, a class 3A felony punishable by up to three years in prison, plus nine to 18 months of post-release supervision.Beetley was arrested on February 14 of this year, after a report that he had driven to the alleged victim's home. According to the arrest affidavit, Beetley “was well known to Fillmore County Deputies from multiple prior stalking calls…”The affidavit also notes that a search of Beetley's vehicle uncovered, “several concerning items.” Among those was a notepad that, according to deputies, “contained several potential license plates and vehicle descriptions which appeared to be out of Nebraska,” along with a partial Kansas license plate number.Also found in the vehicle were “blankets or sheets covering the rear seats and rear hatch compartments. Gloves and duct tape were found on the rear seat floorboard and mud boots in the very back of the vehicle.”Fillmore County Dispatch has recorded 14 calls from the alleged victim dating back to March of 2020.The defendant was arraigned in Fillmore County Court on February 15, 2023. The presiding judge was Michael P. Burns, who set bond at $250,000 (10 percent). The bond has a no-contact provision.Prior ConvictionBeetley has a prior conviction for stalking in Gage County in 2019. On May 26 2019, Beetley was issued a citation for Stalking and trespassing on the alleged victim’s property. On August 7, 2019, law enforcement was informed of three new incidents reported by the victim that occurred over the previous weekend.On August 18, 2019, while conducting surveillance due to the ongoing investigation of the defendant, law enforcement observed Beetley’s vehicle, “drive by twice within one block of the victim’s residence. I then observed David L. Beetley’s red 2018 Jeep parked less than one block from the victim’s residence.”This is according to a Probable Cause For Warrantless Arrest.Within one minute of seeing the vehicle drive by, the officer “observed a flashlight on the north side of the victim’s house in the yard.”The officer “announced himself and yelled for Beetley to stop and Beetley took off running.”The officer pursued the defendant on foot. Another officer saw the defendant and wrote in the affidavit, “When I observed Beetley run north across Belvedere in front of me, I announced myself, yelled for him to stop and advised he was under arrest. He did not stop and continued running north. Beetley then turned around and ran south in the direction of where his vehicle was parked. I yelled again for Beetley to stop and that he was under arrest. He did not stop. As I got closer I announced myself again and yelled for him to stop where he eventually stopped and got on the ground in the yard.”The officer noted that, “Beetley was wearing a ski mask, gloves and carrying a flashlight.”Beetley was originally charged with felony stalking, multiple counts of violating a harassment order, second degree trespassing and resisting arrest. In accordance with a plea agreement, he pleaded to a reduced charge of misdemeanor stalking, along with one count of second degree trespassing and obstruction of a peace officer. He was sentenced to 24 months of probation.

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