Winston
County Sheriff Jason Pugh urges local residents to remain vigilante concerning
recent lawn mower and ATV thefts in the county. There have been no reports in
the last few days after a rash of thefts of zero turn mowers and ATV’s across
the county in April.
Pugh noted
that these thefts appeared to be organized and there are indications that the
perpetrators have simply moved to other areas of the state. Similar thefts have
occurred in Newton and now most recently in neighboring Leake County.
“There’s no
guarantee that they won’t return to our communities at some point”, said Pugh.
Residents should take reasonable precautions and report any suspicious activity
or vehicles to the sheriff’s department.”
“Residents
should store their equipment behind locked doors if possible. If that’s not
possible, mowers and ATV’s should be kept out of sight from public view, keys
should be removed and consider a chain and padlock.
Law
enforcement across several counties are cooperating in the investigations.
