Alert Owner Points Authorities To Rogers County Trailer Thief

Trailer thefts are a big problem in Oklahoma.

But this morning one trailer was returned to its owner and a man landed behind bars.

It all started at about 6:30 a.m., when a dog alerted homeowners in Owasso to someone stealing their horse trailer.

The trailer owner followed and Rogers County Sheriff Scott Walton said he deserves a lot of credit.

"Trailer owner used good judgment," Walton said. "Didn't put himself or anybody else in harm's way."

But he did give police a good location of the thief and trailer when it was hauled into Tulsa.

Anthony Jones was arrested on North Mingo Road.

"Most of that was due to [the owner's] own good actions using his head and good common-sense decisions," Walton said.

What makes the case out of the ordinary is the suspect had his 13-year-old stepson with him, and was in the process of already texting a potential buyer, authorities said.

"Trailer theft is certainly a crime that all law enforcement agencies share," Walton said.

Walton said it is partly because trailers are easy to move quickly and easy to sell.

"I don't know of a commodity that is more apt to be stolen than a trailer," Walton said.

The problem is they're often hard to find, so owners need to take precautions like removing a wheel, or using a chain and good lock that's very visible," Walton said.

"The more visible you can make something from the road that it looks secure, they're going to go on down the road to find a less-hardened target."

In this case, it worked out OK with the owner getting his trailer back.

But Walton said owners also need to remember to put identifiable marks on trailers in both concealed and obvious locations.

That helps to ensure recovered trailers get back to their rightful owners.

Walton said for more high-dollar trailers, it may be worth it for owners to put a GPS tracker on it to help law enforcement to recover it.