Pennington County, MN (trfnews.i234.me)—A Texas resident has been charged in Pennington County District Court for allegedly stealing a lawn mower in rural Thief River Falls. The accused, Samuel James Jones Jr., 46, of Tyler, Texas, faces charges of felony theft and felony possession of stolen property exceeding $5,000. The charges were filed on Friday, Dec. 27.
The case began with a report from a local landowner who found a Country Clipper Boss XL 9010 lawn mower valued at $16,049 stuck near a field on 205th Avenue Northeast, southeast of Thief River Falls. The sheriff’s deputy investigating the case discovered that the padlock securing the mowers at Alpha Equipment and Ag Sales had been cut, and a mower matching the missing one was identified.
Further investigation revealed surveillance footage from multiple locations. A blue GMC Sierra truck with a black trailer, seen in the footage, matched the description of a vehicle observed by an off-duty police sergeant on July 6 near the scene. The truck was later identified using license plate recognition cameras, revealing it had traveled in Bossier Parish, Louisiana, and Bates County, Missouri, days before the incident.
Authorities continued to gather evidence, including footage from Seven Clans Casino and Sanford Ambulance, which showed the suspect vehicle and trailer near the location where the stolen mower was found. The investigation also connected the case to a separate incident involving Jones at an antenna site in Rushford, Minnesota.
Jones has been summoned to appear in court, and further proceedings are pending.
I’m Chris Harper, reporting for trfnews.i234.me