Beings general store merchant, Pearson could've just said He's only a humble man who sells goods to the citizens of Rhodes. However he is shown talking for a while not to mention he has an photo of the Van Der Linde Gang directly in the store seeing as he was simply a cook,married and with a family now he very well could've gave the agents the information needed on when John last visited in order to earn himself a way out of Agent Ross crosshairs.