John Paul Zapata, who was wanted for aggravated escape from custody, has been captured, Barton County Sheriff Brian Bellendir said Friday afternoon. Zapata had been released on a furlough by order of the 20th Judicial District Court on Monday. He failed to return at the appointed time Wednesday morning.
Through various investigative techniques, the Barton County Sheriff’s Office detectives were able to locate him in Raymond, Bellendir said. The Rice County Sheriff’s office was notified, and a search warrant was obtained for a residence in Raymond. At about 3:05 p.m. Friday, Zapata was located and taken into custody.
He was returned to the Barton County Jail and faces additional charges of aggravated escape.
“I would personally thank detective Sgt. David Paden, detective Adam Hales and detective Bryan Volkel,” Bellenidr said. “These officers went above and beyond normal investigations to apprehend this dangerous individual. We would like to also thank the Rice County Sheriff’s Office for their quick assistance in capturing the suspect.”
On Monday, the 34-year-old Zapata, Great Bend, pled guilty and no contest to three charges, ranging from drugs to resisting arrest, stemming from a May 8 afternoon-long standoff with Barton County law enforcement. As a result, he was to be sentenced in August to 41 months in Kansas Department of Corrections custody.
However, “now that Zapata has violated the terms of the plea agreement, the state is now free to ask for the maximum sentence in those three cases which is approximately 91 months,” Barton County Attorney Levi Morris said. “He doubled his sentence when he failed to return.”
Zapata has a long rap sheet in Barton County.
Bellendir confirmed Zapata is also known as John Zapata-Beltran. And, on March 4, according to the Barton County Sheriff’s Office daily report, John Zapata-Beltran was booked for distribution of methamphetamine, aggravated child endangerment, possession of drug distribution paraphernalia and money laundering. He was released later that day on a $20,000 surety bond. A search warrant was executed early that morning at the 260 N. Washington residence.
Further back, on Sept. 13, 2019, Barton County Sheriff’s Office contacted Zapata at the N. Washington residence where he was arrested then on charges of conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine and felon in possession of a firearm. That action was part of a raid conducted at several locations in the county.
According to the Great Bend Tribune’s “On the Record” report of Sept. 13, 2019, Zapata was booked into the Barton County Jail on charges of criminal possession of a firearm and felony in possession of firearm, with bond set at $300,000. He was released on a surety bond on Sept. 19.
