3 of 4 rustled calves - RCMP

By Sarah Jones

Wild West? Cattle rustling still exists in Alberta

Apr 21, 2021 | 10:13 PM

Clearwater County, AB. — Back in the day, stealing a man’s horse or cattle was a hanging offence, now you’ll just be charged with theft and potentially go to jail, much less harsh.

This month three different units of RCMP executed a search warrant on a rural property in Central Alberta after an investigation was launched into stolen livestock from the Caroline area.

Four stolen calves were located on the property and have been since returned to their owner.

44-year-old Michael Goodine of Clearwater County has been charged with four counts of theft of cattle, one count of failing to comply with a release condition, and one count of possessing ammunition while prohibited from doing so.

Goodine was remanded to custody and will appear in Rocky Mountain House Provincial Court on April 28, 2021.

Week-in-review: Federal Budget, water agreements and success for tourism industry

Apr 20, 2024

What's Happening in Lethbridge this weekend: April 19, 2024

Apr 19, 2024

What's Happening in Lethbridge this week: April 15, 2024

Apr 15, 2024

Sergeant Gary Maclaren, Southern Alberta Crime Reduction Unit, indicated the impact from this type of crime on the victims will be on-going.

“The victims will continue to experience not only the stress resulting from being a victim of crime, but also the added financial costs which include the cost of purchasing milk replacer and having to bottle feed the animals as a result of them being apart from their mother too long. Other impacts are long term effects on the mothers of the calves as a result of their separation which can reduce their value.”

RCMP were able to solve two crimes at once. While they were searching the property for the stolen calves, a man and woman drove onto the property. Officers noticed the vehicle’s licence plate did not match the vehicle and the driver was found to be operating the vehicle while being prohibited from doing so.

A loaded .45 calibre rifle was located inside the vehicle along with 12 catalytic converters and a quantity of suspected methamphetamine.

Stolen Catalytics – RCMP

38-year-old Mac Smith has been charged with:

• Unauthorized possession of a firearm
• Possession of a firearm knowing possession unauthorized
• Careless use of firearm
• Unsafe storage of firearm
• Possession of methamphetamine (Crystal Meth)
• Fail to comply with release condition order
• Drive while unauthorized (TSA)
  Seized gun — RCMP

Smith was remanded to custody to appear in Rocky Mountain House Provincial Court.

The investigation relating to the seized items continues.

Anyone with information on cattle theft is urged to contact the Livestock Section of the RCMP at 403-701-1462, or their local police. If you wish to remain anonymous, you can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), online at www.P3Tips.com or by using the “P3 Tips” app available through the Apple App or Google Play Store.