Cattle rustling?? Did we time warp back to 1896?? http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/3988213.html Authorities bust cattle-rustling ring Brazoria County rancher is suspect; Nolan Ryan's cows among the stolen By ARMANDO VILLAFRANCA and ERIC HANSON Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle Authorities said Tuesday they have cracked a cattle-rustling operation that stretched across eight counties and claimed 289 head, including 17 cows and 30 calves belonging to Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan. The total value of the stolen livestock was estimated at up to $300,000. Authorities recovered 83 head this week from the pastures of a Brazoria County cattle rancher who authorities say has confessed to the thefts. "He comes from a ranching family, knows the business, knows cattle," said Brent Mast, Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association special ranger based in Willis. "He's knowledgeable enough about the business to know how to steal cattle, brand registration, and he knew the proper way to hide stolen cattle, if there's a proper way to hide stolen cattle." The rancher, who has not been charged, faces 14 counts of cattle theft, a third-degree felony. The investigation remains ongoing, and authorities did not rule out that others could face charges. Special Texas Ranger Tommy Johnson said police plodded through rain-soaked pastures in Angleton on Monday and expect to recover another 10 to 15 stolen animals at another pasture as soon as the fields dry. He said the suspect is expected to surrender today. While investigating, authorities speculated the thief would pull up to a pasture with a large trailer and load up the cattle. One theft, of 50 cattle, would have required several trailers. "He sold the unbranded stuff," Johnson said. "This guy owned cattle himself, and he would mix the stolen cattle with his own personal cattle and sell them and throw you off at the sale barn. "What he would do was keep them three or four weeks and sell six here, five here, eight here. Mix them in with cattle and calves that belonged to him where it wouldn't be obvious what was going on." Jack Langdon, an investigator with the Brazoria County Sheriff's Office, said authorities got a break last week when 10 cattle were stolen from a Navasota sales barn. After selling eight of the cattle at a Wharton County sales barn, Langdon said, the rancher tried to sell the remaining cows Thursday in Groesbeck. A cattle buyer at the Groesbeck sales barn recognized the brand on the stolen cows. Langdon said investigators traced the sales back to the rancher, who later confessed to the theft along with 13 other thefts committed over a span of nine months. Of the recovered cows, 17 had been stolen in September from Ryan's China Grove Ranch in Rosharon. His 30 calves are still missing, Mast said. Johnson said the investigators were relieved to finally make an arrest. "We knew that what it would take was just one good break," he said. "If we could find one cow, we could clear the case." Mast said he did not know whether all the cattle will be recovered because investigators have not determined if or how many were sold to feedlots. The investigation was led by Brazoria County, which had five cases of cattle theft, and the special rangers of the Fort Worth-based Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association. Other agencies included the Texas Rangers' office in Texas City; the sheriff's offices in Fort Bend, Houston, Grimes and Walker counties; and police departments in Houston, Pearland, Manvel, Alvin and League City.
thread titles should be more specific. I can't fault A-Train on this. is he supposed not only check the page but open threads?
