Oregon Fugitive Wanted in West Tennessee Captured by U.S. Marshals

Madison County, TN – After a coordinated investigation by the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) in the Districts of West Tennessee and Oregon, Walter Leonard Smalls, age 69, of Grants Pass, Oregon, was arrested May 18, 2025, for failure to appear for possession of a controlled substance with intent in Madison County, Tennessee.

On May 3, 2023, a Madison County Sheriff’s Deputy stopped an RV on I-40 for traffic violations. A probable cause search of the vehicle led to the discovery of 437 pounds of vacuum sealed packages of marijuana, 800 THC cartridges, 84 mushroom chocolate bars, 27 edible mushroom packages, 24 packs of THC edibles, and approximately 1 pound of THC wax. Walter Smalls was arrested and transported to the Madsion County Jail. He was later released on bond.

After failing to appear for an August 12, 2024, arraignment in Madison County Circuit Court, a warrant was issued for Small’s arrest.

The fugitive case was adopted by the USMS Two Rivers Violent Fugitive Task Force in Jackson (TRVFTF). The task force developed information that Smalls was back in Oregon and provided investigative leads to the USMS Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force.

On May 18, 2025, the task force found Smalls at a residence in Wolf Creek, Oregon and took him into custody. He is being held at the Josephine County Jail.

The U.S. Marshals Service Two Rivers Violent Fugitive Task Force is a multi-agency task force within Western Tennessee. The TRVFTF has offices in Memphis and Jackson, and its membership is primarily composed of Deputy U.S. Marshals, Shelby, Fayette, Tipton, and Gibson County Sheriff’s Deputies, Memphis and Jackson Police Officers, Tennessee Department of Correction Special Agents and the Tennessee Highway Patrol. Since 2021, the TRVFTF has captured over 3,000 violent offenders and sexual predators.