A Linton man was arrested last night on a warrant issued earlier in the week in an auto theft case that dates back to 2020. The suspect is accused of selling a stolen truck to another inmate when they were both incarcerated.

Jonah Garrett Cooley, 22, Linton, was arrested by Deputy Zachary Goad of the Greene County Sheriff’s Department on Thursday, February 5, on a warrant that was issued for Cooley’s arrest on Tuesday, February 2, as a result of an investigation by Indiana State Police Trooper G. B. Wilson.

On September 4, 2020, a green 1995 GMC pickup truck was stolen from the Elnora area. The truck was located and recovered on November 9, 2020, from a residence in Linton.

When it was recovered, information was received from a witness that the truck was brought to that location by Cooley and that Cooley had gotten the truck in a trade with another man and that Cooley knew the truck might have been stolen.

According to a probable cause document prepared by Trooper Wilson, at some point when Cooley was in jail in a different case, he made a deal in the jail to sell the truck to another inmate. The transaction, which included a $200 cash payment, apparently did take place and a woman outside the jail put the cash into Cooley’s commissary account at the Greene County Jail.

Trooper Wilson noted that evidence includes text conversations between Cooley and another individual about the stolen truck.

Cooley is facing a preliminary charge of auto theft, a Level 6 felony.

He was booked in last night at 10:15 p.m. with bond set at $4,000 surety with ten percent cash allowed. As of late Friday, he had not posted bond.

He’s scheduled to appear in Greene Superior Court for his initial hearing on Monday afternoon, February 8.