Linn County Sheriff’s deputies recovered one of two stolen flatbed car trailers in Crawfordsville on the morning of Tuesday, Jan. 31.
According to Sheriff Bruce Riley, deputies responded about 3 a.m. Tuesday morning to a report of the stolen trailers in the area of Kirk Avenue in Brownsville. One trailer was reported to have a large Cummins engine on the trailer and the other was empty.
Shortly after the trailers were reported stolen, Riley said, deputies located a black Jeep Cherokee towing a trailer with a large Cummins engine loaded on the trailer.
The Jeep Cherokee was leaving the city of Brownsville, eastbound on Northern Drive. Before the deputy could activate his emergency lights, the Jeep Cherokee and trailer loaded with the engine drove off of the road into a field, Riley said.
The operator, Ryan Howard Pruett, 28, of Springfield, attempted to negotiate a corner at a speed that was too fast for the heavy load his vehicle was towing.
Pruett was arrested and transported to the Linn County Jail, where he was charged with two counts of unauthorized use of a vehicle and first-degree theft.
After further investigation, the second stolen trailer was later located and recovered sitting next to the Crawfordsville Market, Riley said. He said an investigation is continuing.