A 24-year-old Norfork man has been sentenced to eight years in the Arkansas Department of Corrections after pleading guilty to drug-related charges in Baxter County Circuit Court.
Mason Hunter Chism was arrested in October 2022 after Baxter County deputies and officers with the Arkansas Department of Corrections located him at a residence on Red’s Landing Trail in the Norfork area. Authorities were seeking Chism because he was listed as a probation absconder and had active arrest warrants.
According to officials, Chism was found following a detailed search of the property. He had concealed himself under a blanket in a bedroom.
Chism has a record of prior encounters with law enforcement in Baxter County. Court documents did not specify details of the current charges or prior incidents leading to his latest sentence.
The investigation and arrest were part of ongoing local efforts to address probation violations and drug-related offenses in the region.