A man charged with rustling cattle from a Lakota, N.D., dairy made his first appearance in court Friday.
David Hill, 53, is accused of stealing heifers on three occasions in 2009. According to a criminal complaint, he took 18 animals worth a total of $14,400 from the Dusty Willow Dairy where he worked.
The complaint says Hill sold five of the cows May 25, 2009, at the Perham Stockyards in Perham, Minn. At the Central Livestock Association in Albany, Minn., he sold five Aug. 5, 2009, and eight Nov. 20, 2009, the complaint states.
Hill, of Turtle Lake, N.D., was charged in March, and a warrant was issued for his arrest in April. Nelson County Sheriff Kelly Janke said Hill was arrested on the warrant Tuesday during a traffic stop in McLean County, N.D.
Along with three counts of felony theft, Hill is charged with three counts of transporting cows from North Dakota into Minnesota without having their brands inspected by authorities. If convicted on all charges, he would face a maximum prison sentence of 41 years.
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Janke said this was the first cattle rustling case his department has handled since he became sheriff in 2005. Such cases are usually investigated by the North Dakota Stockmen's Association.
As of Friday evening, Hill was being held at the Lake Region Correctional Center in Devils Lake, with a bail amount of $5,000.
Messages left for Hill at the jail and for the owner of the Dusty Willow Dairy were not returned Friday.
Ingersoll reports on crime and courts. Reach him at (701) 780-1269; (800) 477-6572, ext. 269; or send e-mail to aingersoll@gfherald.com .
