Helena West-Helena Mayor Christopher Franklin charged with tax fraud

Helena West-Helena Mayor Christopher Franklin, 44, was arrested Tuesday (June 24), according to the Arkansas State Police. He was charged with not paying his taxes and is facing numerous felony counts.

Franklin was charged with four counts of failure to pay or file a tax return, a Class D felony. Bond for Franklin was set at $100,000. It was not clear if the mayor had posted bond as of Wednesday (June 25) afternoon.

Earlier this month, First Judicial District Prosecutor Todd Murray asked the state police to investigate Franklin’s tax returns. The ASP sent in their Special Investigations Unit (SIU) to probe Franklin’s finances.

The SIU investigation revealed that Franklin has not filed taxes four out of the past five years. Franklin was taken into custody during a traffic stop at about 5 p.m. on Tuesday by an SIU agent and Troop D troopers without incident. The investigation is ongoing. Additional information will be released as it becomes available, according to ASP.

It’s not clear if Franklin will resign from the mayor’s office, and there have been efforts underway prior to his arrest to remove him from the office. The Helena World reported in May that the City Council voted 6-0 to censure him after he unleashed a profanity-laced tirade involving his daughter and niece on Facebook Live.

In a later social media post, Franklin asked for forgiveness, but there has been an effort underway to collect enough signatures for a recall vote, according to numerous reports.