Bullard man arrested on multiple charges, including grooming and enticing a child

Published 10:26 am Thursday, August 29, 2024

BULLARD — A Bullard man accused of enticing a child, grooming and other crimes was arrested Wednesday after police say multiple children were found in a location that was not their home.

Randy Smith, 47, is charged with enticing a child, harboring a runaway, two counts of child grooming, witness tampering and six counts of furnishing alcohol to a minor.

After an investigation that began in July, Bullard police arrested Smith on Wednesday afternoon. He was booked into the Smith County Jail, where he remains, on bonds totaling $1.475 million.

Bullard Police Chief Jeff Brag said his officers responded on July 25 to a home in Bullard to help the Smith County Sheriff’s Office locate a juvenile who had been reported as a runaway. When officers and deputies got there, multiple juveniles who did not live there were found, including the reported runaway. Officers contacted parents and later released the children from the scene to their parents.

Further investigation revealed evidence that led officers to believe crimes had been committed. Detectives were able to get enough information to complete affidavits and warrants for Smith, reviewed by Judge Austin Reeve Jackson of the 114th District Court, which led to Smith’s arrest.