Suspect arrested in Montana teacher Sherry Arnold disappearance, another detained in Rapid City, SD

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Authorities said Friday a tip helped them arrest one man and detain another in connection to the disappearance and death of Sherry Arnold, a 43-year-old algebra teacher from Sidney, Mont.

A 47-year-old man was arrested and taken to the Williams County Jail in Williston on Thursday, and a 22-year-old man is being held for questioning in Rapid City, S.D., Sidney Police Chief Frank DiFonzo said in a press conference from the Sidney Law and Justice Center on Friday.

Arnold was well known, and had friends and family in the Dickinson area.

DiFonzo did not release information regarding who submitted the tip or where Arnold’s body was found, however he said “dozens and dozens” of tips had been provided by the public.

On Thursday, the FBI told The Dickinson Press that Arnold’s body had not been found. On Friday, the agency would not disclose when or where Arnold was discovered, or how she died.

Sidney Public Schools Superintendent Daniel Farr told The Press on Friday morning about the death and said, “We’ve had better days.”

Creators of the “Help Find Sherry Arnold” Facebook page thanked those Friday who have supported Arnold’s family.

Sidney Mayor Bret Smelser, who has family ties in Dickinson, said the past six days have been hard for himself and the Montana community.

“It’s always tough, especially when you lose (someone) on your watch,” Smelser said.

Smelser added that he hopes people within the community can start to feel comfort again, which he said will be no easy task.

“That’s not going to happen overnight,” he said.

Arnold was last seen alive at 6:30 a.m. Saturday when she left her home for a morning run. The only clue to her disappearance that had been publicly released was that one of her shoes was found along her running route.

Dickinson resident Tom Arnold, Sherry Arnold’s brother-in-law, was in Sidney on Thursday, and described her as the kind of teacher students want to have in front of them in a classroom.

“Sherry was a teacher that was very much loved by her students,” he said. “She wanted everyone to do well.”

Bobby Tippon, a former student of Arnold’s, admired her dedication to students involved with sports and extracurricular activities.

“She did take a lot of her time to actually sit down and help the kids, instead of just rushing them by,” Tippon said. “She was a sweetheart.”

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