A warrant issued earlier this summer for the arrest of a Linton businessman remains outstanding. He’s accused of accepting antique items on consignment to be sold at auction then not paying the owner for the items and not returning them.

Jeffrey Alan Dixon, 55, Linton, has been under investigation by Chief Paul Clark of the Linton Police Department. A warrant for Dixon’s arrest was issued on June 5 but he has not yet been taken into custody.

Back in mid-April, the owner of numerous antique items went to the Linton Police Department to report a theft. The owner explained that Jeff Dixon, owner of Pickin’ Dixons Auction Service in Linton, approached him in November of 2018 and offered to sell antique furniture for him, saying he would sell the items at an auction then give the profits to the owner.

When Chief Clark asked the owner if he had entered into a written agreement with Dixon, the owner said Dixon told him it wasn’t necessary. The owner said he was inclined to trust Dixon because Dixon owned a local business and the two belonged to the same social fraternity.

After giving numerous items to Dixon to auction, the owner spoke to Dixon in December of 2018 at Dixon’s business to ask about the sale of the antiques. According to the owner, Dixon said he had $700-800 to give him and was going to take the remaining items to another location and try to sell them there. The owner said he told Dixon to take whatever he was owed for his service and pay the money and return the remaining items. The owner said since that conversation took place, Dixon had not given him any money and had not returned any of the items.

Chief Clark noted that for several weeks after the owner made the report, he attempted to contact Dixon by phone, at his home and through social media with no success. Dixon did not return any calls to police.

A list of items the owner gave to Dixon to sell included an antique dining room table with chairs, several antique cabinets, an antique desk and chair, an antique coffee table, several antique gliders, an antique spinning wheel with two antique yarn winders and several other items of antique furniture. The owner was expecting the sale would bring him more than $2,000.

Chief Clark noted that based on the owner’s estimate and the fact that the owner claimed Dixon had sold some of the items for between $700 and $800 with other items left to sell, he estimated the value of the theft to be between $750 and $50,000.

After Chief Clark’s findings were submitted to the prosecutor’s office, a criminal case was filed against Dixon on June 4 and the warrant issued for Dixon’s arrest on June 5.

Dixon is facing a preliminary charge of theft where the value of the property is between $750 and $50,000, a Level 6 felony.