$250,000 Worth of Stolen Property Seized in Choctaw County

Commissioner of Agriculture, Cindy Hyde-Smith, reported that on Monday, March 4, 2013, investigators from the Mississippi Agricultural and Livestock Theft Bureau (MALTB), the law enforcement division of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce, in conjunction with Sheriff Cloyd Halford of the Choctaw County Sheriff’s Department seized over $250,000.00 of stolen property.

After a lengthy investigation, MALTB Investigators and Sheriff Halford seized the stolen items which were located on property off of West Fentress Road in Choctaw County. The following list of items were seized at this location: a horse trailer, bulldozer, backhoe, tractors, farm implements, trenching equipment, utility trailers, zero-turn mowers, a golf cart, as well as, a Harley Davidson motorcycle and other stolen items.

Commissioner Hyde-Smith stated, “I am proud of our investigators hard work and diligent effort; also, I am very appreciative of the cooperative relationship provided by the Choctaw County Sheriff’s Office to help close this case. The victims of these thefts are enthusiastic that their property has been located and returned in a timely manner.”

Some of the recovered items had been reported stolen to Flowood and Pearl Police Departments, as well as, the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department. Investigators are still in the process of identifying all of the stolen items that were recovered, and one arrest has been made at this time. This investigation is currently on-going, and more information will be released at a later date.