Fort Worth, Texas - A Welch, Okla., man was arrested for theft of 65 head of cattle by Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association (TSCRA) Special Ranger John Cummings and Lt. Jack Woodall of the Craig County Sheriff's Office.
John "Ted" Linthicum, a 49-year-old man from Welch, Okla., surrendered to the Craig County Jail on June 13 after confessing he had sold 65 head of cattle at the Fredonia Livestock Auction in Kan. for a total of $39,448.47.
The stolen cattle belonged to Robert Nichols of Lawton, Okla. Nichols had a contract with Linthicum to let 900 head of his cattle graze on Linthicum's land. On May 19, Nichols was watching an Internet cattle auction live from Fredonia when he saw 39 head of his cattle being sold at the auction. The cattle were marked with his brand, but were being sold under Linthicum's name.
Further investigations revealed that Linthicum had previously sold 26 head of Nichols' cattle on May 12.
"With the help of the Craig County Sheriff's Office, we were able to quickly make the arrest and recover the funds from both sales," Cummings said.
"The Kay County Sheriff's has also been investigating Linthicum and recently charged him with obtaining money by fraud for the sale of five registered bulls to a Kay County rancher who discovered that the genetics advertised and on the registration papers of the bulls he purchased did not match after DNA testing," Cummings said. "Anyone with information on this case or other related cases is encouraged to come forward."
If convicted, Linthicum could face up to10 years in prison.
TSCRA has 29 special rangers stationed strategically throughout Texas and Oklahoma who have in-depth knowledge of the cattle industry and are trained in all facets of law enforcement. All are commissioned as Special Rangers by the Texas Department of Public Safety and/or the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.