For Immediate Release: June 14, 2013
Contact: Carmen Fenton, 512-673-3906

Claremore, Okla. – Authorities have arrested a Chelsea man who they believe is responsible for the May theft of a pickup truck and 3,000 pounds of stranded copper stolen from a ranch near Chelsea, Okla.

Matthew James Fuller, 26, was apprehended Tuesday by the Rogers County Sheriff’s Office and charged with burglary II, grand larceny and malicious destruction of private property. He was released on a $5,000 bond.

Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association Special Ranger John Cummings said that the suspect allegedly broke into the victim’s barn, loaded the pickup with three 750-foot coils of large diameter copper cable and drove off. The wire was worth approximately $7,000.

Authorities recovered the pickup from Chelsea Lake June 3, and the copper wire was recovered June 12 in brush on a property in Rogers County. TSCRA had offered a $500 reward through the association’s Operation Cow Thief hotline for any information leading to the arrest of a suspect.

TSCRA would like to thank Rogers County Sheriff Scott Walton, Investigator Joe Garber and Deputy Virgil Carter for their assistance with this investigation.

“This was truly a team effort,” said Cummings. “Everyone worked together to locate the stolen property and arrest a suspect.”

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TSCRA has 30 special rangers stationed strategically throughout Texas and Oklahoma who have in-depth knowledge of the cattle industry and are trained in all facets of law enforcement. All are commissioned as Special Rangers by the Texas Department of Public Safety and/or the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.

TSCRA is a 136 year-old trade association and is the largest and oldest livestock organization based in Texas. TSCRA has more than 16,000 beef cattle operations, ranching families and businesses as members. These members represent approximately 50,000 individuals directly involved in ranching and beef production who manage 4 million head of cattle on 76 million acres of range and pasture land primarily in Texas and Oklahoma, but throughout the Southwest.