3 arrests made in livestock thefts

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Three people have been arrested in connection with the theft of calves and goats in Newton County. Newton County Sheriff Keith Slape says 36-year-old Curt Young of Piercetown, 37-year-old Tiffany Day of Harrison and 20-year-old Zachary Johnson of Western Grove are each charged with theft of livestock and cruelty to animals. Two vehicles used in the thefts and transport of the stolen livestock were also seized.

Investigator Glenn Wheeler says the sheriff’s office started getting reports of missing calves and goats several weeks ago. One resident provided a partial description of a vehicle seen in the area of one of the thefts. A hidden game camera was set up and later captured the vehicle when it came back to the area.

Newton County investigators used that information along with information from the community to develop several leads leading them to interview one individual who admitted to being involved in the thefts. He told authorities some of the calves had been taken out of the county, and at least one calf had been killed and left at the scene to make it look like predators had gotten the other calves.

Investigators recovered calves belonging to two different Newton County residents at a farm in Searcy County. Goats belonging to another Newton County farmer were found at a suspect’s house near Piercetown.

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