Bounty Hunter William "Cobra" Staubs Wants His Freedom Back
August 07, 2009One of the people at the center of the Haleigh Cummings case is William Eugene Staubs, aka "Cobra," a bounty hunter from Fort Lauderdale, FL, who has been involved in several high profile cases over the years, including the O.J. Simpson case and the take-down of an alleged terrorist in Fort Campbell, KY.
Despite an impressive record, which, by his count, includes the capture of over 8,000 fugitives – 199 of whom he says were child molesters – Staubs now finds himself at the center of his own criminal investigation – a case which he claims has been manufactured to silence him.
According to Staubs, he got involved in the Haleigh case just weeks after the tot was reporting missing by her father, Ronald Cummings.
"Pastor Richard Grund (father of Jesse Grund – Casey Anthony's former fiancé) got a call from a woman who was involved in the case, and she told him that there was something really wrong going on in this little girl's disappearance," Staubs said in an interview with Criminal Report Daily. "She said 'we need some type of investigator. These people are poor; they don't have any money.' So Pastor Grund contacted me, and we discussed it. I asked him what he thought and he said, 'I will tell you right now; it isn't going to be easy. It is going to be dangerous, so I suggest you prepare yourself.' So I called journalist Art Harris and asked him to come down to Satsuma to go behind the scenes with me, and I headed down there to get started."
Staubs says that within his first week in Satsuma he was able to meet with Haleigh's family and local police, during which time he uncovered a lot of inside information in the case. In addition, he also claims to have actively searched wooded areas in an attempt to find Haleigh.
"I worked an average of 20 to 22 hours a day every day," Staubs said. "Art Harris went with me, probably 5 to 7 days; in some cases, 16 hours a day. I conducted interviews and intense searches on land and in the swamps. I had to do stuff in the middle of the night because, you know, if you are walking around, somebody would shoot you. Also, I wanted to get into the underground, so I checked clients to see who is out on bond, and I got a list of names. I took that list, and I met with the sheriff, FDLE (Florida Department of Law Enforcement) and the assistant state prosecutor for Putnam County. I met with all these people, opened up all these files, laid them out and asked them if they had a problem if I go out for these folks right here. They asked me what I wanted them for, and I told them that some of them are wanted back by the bail bond agent and other ones I wanted to talk to and see where they are and, chances are, we might be revoking a few of them. They didn't have any problem whatsoever. Art Harris also filmed some of that and watched that interview go down."
One of the people Staubs was zeroing in on was a man who was free on bail after being arrested for alleged sex abuse. The individual caught Staubs' attention because of his alleged crimes and his allegations that he had attempted to donate furniture to the Haleigh Bug Center, a place where search volunteers would meet up. According to Staubs, the man's visit to the center – where children are often present – was a direct violation of the individual's bond. Staubs says he contacted the agency that held the bond and then went to the man's house on March 20, to pick him up.
"The insurance company that guaranteed the bond gave me the file," Staubs said. "I am a licensed agent with full arrest powers and everything, so I called the law to tell them I was going. When I got out there, I blew the horn and I heard a shotgun or something go off. I called the police and said 'There's a problem,' and the defendant started screaming at me, so now we are off to a real bad start."
Moments after arriving on the scene, Staubs was joined by two police officers, who stood watch as he threw the man to the ground and handcuffed him (click here to view video of the event as shot by Art Harris) before putting him into his vehicle for transport to the county jail. It was during that trip that Staubs says he received a call from people at the insurance company, who, he claims, said they had changed their mind, and told him to release the man.
The company in question, Continental Heritage, has not returned calls to Criminal Report Daily regarding the case; however, in a May interview with artharris.com, they said they never gave Staubs permission to make the pick-up.
"Cobra called me to say what he wanted to do, and I made clear [that] he in no way represented Chuck's Bail Bonds, C.E. Parish or Continental Insurance. As a private citizen, he can go talk to someone, but I told him, 'Do not represent yourself as an agent of the company," general agent Roger Capener told Harris, adding, "I just don't understand Cobra. He's made pickups before, even caught a terrorist with bombs. But after he called a friend of mine in the business to intercede for him on Snodgrass, I said, 'Where is this guy coming from?' Then he calls back and says, 'Don't worry, I got the guy handcuffed.' I said, 'Are you CRAZY? Are you nuts? Have you lost your mind?' You don't do things like that, even if you have permission from a company to go talk to a guy.' He's a loose cannon. Who would give permission to wrestle a guy to the ground and put handcuffs on him? That's an instant lawsuit in our business … What Cobra did was stupid."
As a result of the incident, Staubs was arrested and charged with a single felony count of false imprisonment. He was placed in the county jail and held for a brief period of time before being released on a $5,000 bond.
"They told me that what I done was illegal and I asked them to please look at the state statute - that I am equal to a police officer and that I have the right of arrest and I can detain him for as long as I need to," Staubs said. "It doesn't say in the statute that if, at any time, the insurance company starts arguing with the pickup guy, that you can charge him with false arrest or false imprisonment. You can't. They violated me … What it's come down to is the insurance company is trying to protect their assets and everything. They say we never authorized him, so now I am in a fight … They are charging me with one statute and another statute says I am innocent."
Staubs believes that the entire ordeal came about, in part, due to information he uncovered in the Haleigh case – information that he says made certain people uncomfortable.
"I tried to help them in any way I could," he said. "Me being a bondsman and a private investigator, I can work real good. [If] they didn't want me there, they should have had the nerve [to tell me] just like they told Geraldo [Rivera] to leave [and] Tim [Miller] from EquuSearch to leave. They should have told me, 'Hey Cobra, we got this. I appreciate everything you tried to do, but we got this and you're kinda making some folks nervous.'"
According to Staubs, prosecutors have offered him a deal in exchange for admitting he was wrong; however, he claims to have turned it down.
"They offered a deal. They tried to give me a PTI [pre trial intervention]. Well a PTI is 18 months, but the problem is there is a clause in there that I have to admit that I did wrong. If I did that - being an officer of the county - my testimony would no longer be reliable."
If convicted of the charge against him, Staubs faces a 5 year prison term and the possible revocation of his bondsman license. Neither option is very appealing to him; however, he says the possibility that he might miss his daughter's upcoming wedding weighs on him even more.
"It isn't right," Staubs said. "I missed my momma's birthday [and] now my daughter is getting married [in Canada] on the 22nd. I am supposed to take my momma to Canada. I got her passport and everything ready, but I am now $35,000 dollars in the negative trying to fight this. I am already running a deficit. I mean I was way bad in [debt] but now they have took away my ability to earn a living because, right now, I can't throw anybody on the ground. I can't kick in nobody's doors … I am on the verge of mental crisis here, from going just flat out teary-eyed, to can't get your thoughts together, to rage, like how could they do this to somebody? This is America, for God sakes."
In addition to his fears, Staubs also has regrets and wonders now whether he should have ever gotten involved in the Haleigh Cummings case.
"I probably shouldn't have [gone] up in there trying to help nobody, I reckon, because a good deed was punished for sure. I just want to get my freedom back. I don't care if I have to move to Belize or something. [They should] leave me alone. Let me figure out how to get my life back [and] get my money back so I can get to my daughter's wedding. I ain't no dadgum zero. I am a hero."
Neither the bail bond agency involved in the case nor the Putnam County Sheriff's Office returned calls for comment.
NOW THE REST OF THE STORY
Haleigh bounty hunter pleads guilty to battery
By Larry Sullivan
Published: Thursday, March 25, 2010 12:57 AM EDT
A bounty hunter accused of illegally detaining a Putnam County sex-abuse suspect while investigating the Haleigh Cummings case pleaded guilty Wednesday to battery.
William Staubs, 52, who calls himself "Cobra," was charged one year ago with false imprisonment for apprehending and handcuffing William Snodgrass, 55, who at the time was home on bond while charged with capital sexual battery of a 9-year-old girl in 2007.
Snodgrass was held for an hour, deputies said.
During a hearing Wednesday in Palatka, Staubs pleaded guilty to battery, a first-degree misdemeanor and lesser charge associated to false imprisonment.
Circuit Judge Ed Hedstrom sentenced Staubs to one year probation and barred him from working as a bondsman in the 7th Judicial Circuit, which includes Putnam County
Staubs traveled to South Putnam last year in the wake of the disappearance of 5-year-old Haleigh Cummings on Feb. 10, 2009.
Staubs, who has worked for bail agencies, insisted he had authority to place Snodgrass in custody.
According to a report filed by Deputy Richard Griffin, who interviewed several witnesses, Staubs had driven his black SUV to the Snodgrass residence, parked and walked past a "No Trespassing" sign.
Snodgrass, who had called 911, stepped outside after deputies arrived, Griffin said.
Even though no warrant had been issued, Staubs told Snodgrass he was under arrest and handcuffed his arms and his legs and "forced him to the ground," Griffin said.
Staubs then shoved his knee into Snodgrass's back, and "yanked" him off the ground into the SUV, Griffin said.
Snodgrass was questioned for an hour by Staubs while being driven around the Satsuma area with a cameraman, Martin Reed, riding along before Snodgrass was taken back home, Griffin said.
Staubs asked Snodgrass if they "were cool" after returning to the residence, asked for a hug and offered to do free private investigation work, the report said.
Staubs reportedly told Snodgrass he wouldn't have been arrested if he had answered Staubs' questions.
Snodgrass signed a complaint affidavit against Staubs for false imprisonment, the report said.
The sex-abuse case charge against Snodgrass is still pending, officials said.
Staubs was one of several people who came to Putnam County as the Haleigh disappearance unfolded. No trace of the child has been found despite a massive search of the area and investigation by the county sheriff's office, as well as state and federal agencies.
More than 5,000 tips have been called in to the sheriff's office in connection with the case.
Meanwhile, Haleigh's father, Ronald Cummings and Misty Croslin, who was babysitting the child the night she vanished, are jailed on narcotics trafficking charges unrelated to the disappearance.
Daily News staff writer Kristin Chambers contributed to this article
lsullivan@palatkadailynews.com
