Cold Case Files: Carroll County man and his dog were stabbed to death in 2018 by "unknown assailants."

Christopher Wayne Alvard

Christopher Wayne Alvard lived in a house on County Road 116 west of Eureka Springs. At thirty-seven he worked steady jobs and kept a routine that centered on his two children. He drove home each day looking forward to the time he spent playing with them.

His mother Maxine Robbinette remembered the big smile he carried and the way he stepped in whenever someone needed a hand. He owned a dog named Benelli that stayed close by his side.

On February 8 2018 Maxine could not reach him by phone. She called the Carroll County Sheriff's Office. Deputies went to the house and found the front door kicked in with blood on the porch. Inside they located Christopher and Benelli. Both had been stabbed multiple times. Christopher had also been struck in the head at least twice. The bodies went to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory for autopsy. The Arkansas State Police sent agents to assist the sheriff's office the same day.

Early in the investigation agents collected items from the scene for testing. A circuit judge ordered a DNA sample from one local man

Jason Hartley Helm on February 26 2018. Helm had already been arrested on a parole violation two weeks after the bodies were found. Statements taken from others described Helm asking for rides near Eureka Springs around the time of the deaths and items with blood later found in a vehicle linked to the group.

One account noted that the three men had gone to the house intending to confront Christopher but the situation turned deadly when he fought back.

The file stayed active for three full years. On February 8 2021 exactly three years after the discovery Arkansas State Police agents and sheriff's deputies arrested Jason Hartley Helm of Holiday Island

Each faced first degree murder and cruelty to animals charges. Court records unsealed after the arrests laid out the steps that connected the men to the scene. All three entered not guilty pleas. A special prosecutor took over the case after the original one stepped aside.

Proceedings moved through the courts with hearings scheduled and evidence reviewed. Then in March 2024 a witness recanted a prior statement. The special prosecutor dismissed the charges against all three men. They were released. Arkansas law still allows the charges to be refiled if new evidence emerges but no decision to do so has been announced.

Maxine Robbinette described the years since the arrests as frustrating. She said the family knew early who they believed was involved yet the process stretched on and then collapsed. She talks to her son every day in her own way and tells him the family has not stopped pushing for answers.

His sister Jenny Horn has said the same. Supporters who sat through hearings called the outcome a setback for the county and the people who knew Christopher. T he house on County Road 116 changed hands after the deaths. The hills around Eureka Springs keep their quiet rhythm. Eight years have passed since the day deputies walked through that kicked in door.

The Arkansas State Police still list the homicide among its open cold cases. The investigation continues through the Carroll County Sheriff's Office. Anyone who remembers details from February 2018 or afterward can reach the sheriff's office at 870 423 2901 or the Arkansas State Police. T

he file remains ready for the piece that might close it.