A Solsberry man has been arrested and is facing a felony charge for allegedly stealing a 1950s International tractor.

Roger Allen Cordell, 45, Solsberry, was booked into the Greene County Jail yesterday, on Monday, January 27, after a warrant was issued for his arrest earlier the same day.

Greene County Sheriff’s Deputy Camron Frye and other deputies including Deputy Harvey Holt and Deputy David Elmore have been investigating the theft of a 1950s International tractor since it was reported as missing in mid-December.

The tractor went missing from a property on State Road 54 near Springville. It was yellow and rusted with a front loader bucket attached to the front. It could be distinguished from characteristics such as paint missing in certain areas, one blue battery cable, a tin cup fastened to the left side of the dash, the horn cap missing off the steering wheel, among other things. The owner said they had purchased the tractor last summer without a title or paperwork.

The tractor remained missing until mid-January when the deputies got a couple of tips. The owner had posted a photo of the tractor on Facebook and someone recognized it. They got a tip about the location of the tractor then got a second tip from someone who had watched people moving the tractor onto the property where it was located.

Deputy Holt then located the tractor on West Deckard Road, Bloomington. When he talked to a man who lived on the property, he said it belonged to someone else who moved it there for him to work on. When he talked to the man who moved it there, he said he had purchased the tractor for $250 from Cordell. And he produced a handwritten bill of sale signed by Cordell. Further, he said he had met Cordell at a property on SR 54, which turned out to be the tractor owner’s property, paid him and picked the tractor up there.

The tractor was towed and returned to the owner.

When Deputy Frye and Deputy Elmore made contact with Cordell, he denied being involved and claimed someone had else had signed his name on the bill of sale. He offered to submit a handwriting sample.

The findings of the investigation were submitted to the prosecutor’s office for review and a criminal case was filed against Cordell last Thursday, January 23.

Cordell’s bond was set at $4,000 surety with ten percent cash allowed. He posted $400 and was released. He’s facing a charge of theft where the value of the property is between $750 and $50,000, a Level 6 felony. He’s scheduled to be in court for an initial hearing on February 10.