Omar Diaz, a 34-year-old man from Georgetown, Texas was arrested last month on cattle theft charges thanks to the work of Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association Special Ranger Kenny Murchison.
In early March, Murchison was helping a deputy gather astray cattle when he notice two of them had holes in their right ears, which was a descriptor of two missing cattle from December. The deputy, Joe Worsham, also told Murchison that three cattle with the same description had been recovered the previous week.
As the cows were being gathered, Diaz reported he had cows missing but Worsham, however, knew Diaz and did not believe he owned any cattle. The pair drove to Diaz’s property and found four additional cows, all had holes in their right ears, and they matched the photos from the victim in December’s cattle theft.
The victim was also able to call the animals with a unique cattle call and the cattle were seized without incident, with 11 of the 12 stolen recovered.
“A brand is the easiest and best way for us to find your cattle,” special ranger Murchsion said. “But it also makes your livestock less vulnerable to theft.”
Also on Diaz’s property, Murchison found stolen trailers and ATVs. Diaz is currently out of jail on $50,000 bond following his March 10 arrest.
“Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association would like to thank Williamson County Sheriff’s Livestock Deputies Joe Worsham and Johnathan Kidwell, the Williamson County District Attorney’s Office and Hays County Sheriff’s Auto Theft Deputy Herman Adair for their work in this case,” the organization said in a release.