Theft & Law
SPECIAL RANGER
ACTIVITY GAINESVILLE MAN INDICTED IN CASE OF STOLEN CATTLE James Paul Woodard faces second-degree felony charges.
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Any small business owner will tell you: it pays to hire the right staff. Unfortunately, hiring wrong can lead to significant losses.
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A Cooke County rancher experienced the latter last year when an employee sold more than $6,000 worth of his boss’ cattle in his girlfriend’s name and pocketed the proceeds.
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Texas & Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association Troy McKinney Special Ranger Troy McKinney TSCRA Special Ranger says James Paul Woodard, a District 11 55-year-old from Gainesville, was indicted June 23 by a Cooke County grand jury. He’ll face second-degree felony charges due to the victim’s advanced age. The grand jury determined Woodard’s girlfriend did not have knowledge of the illegal sales. In October 2020, the victim reached out to the Overbrook Stockyards in Overbrook, Oklahoma, because he had reason to believe some of his cattle had been sold without permission. The auction market’s secretary contacted McKinney, whose investigation proved Woodard had not only sold cattle there, but also at the Decatur Livestock Auction in Decatur. He always put the cattle in his girlfriend’s name to lower suspicion. While the couple owns four cows, it was not enough to produce the number of calves Woodard sold. McKinney says this case is a good reminder to thoroughly vet potential employees and to continue to monitor both them and your cattle.
The Cattleman
Pete and Angela Case (owners): pete@caseranch.com - (325) 650-6209 angela@caseranch.com - (325) 450-7516 Stephen and Tiffany Loyd: stephen@caseranch.com - (325) 642-5818 tiffany@caseranch.com - (325) 665-8481 Located at: 7350 FM 915, Eldorado, TX 76936 Latitude: 31.0373 Longitude: 100.7316 P.O. Box 240 Mertzon, TX 76941
“Theft is devastating for a rancher, who is also battling high input costs, weather and market volatility,” McKinney says. “But it’s always a little worse when it’s someone you trusted.” CT
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tscra.org
September 2021
