Cattle rustling – not a crime you hear a lot about these days.
But a Bradley County man has been charged in connection with the rustling of 11 cows on July 12.
Dustin Chad Hutson is being charged with theft for more than $1,000, said Bradley County Sheriff’s spokesman Bob Gault.
The cows were reported missing from a pasture at the intersection of Chestuee Road and Gatlin Road and were reported as having a value of $3,000, Gault said.
The investigation was solved when a man who purchased 11 head of cattle several days earlier saw a newspaper article that said that some cows had been stolen, Gault said. The man told the sheriff’s office that he had bought the stolen cows, Gault said.
The man told investigators he had met a man pulling a cattle trailer in a parking lot and had purchased the cows for $3,000, Gault said.
Investigators were able to identify Huston after the report was filed, Gault said.
Hutson is currently being held in the Polk County Jail for a probation violation and will be moved to the Bradley County Jail following his release, Gault said.