Two nursery thieves will be on the hook to repay nearly $15,000 after they were caught red-handed ripping off several nurseries.
Donald G. Muncey, 46, was sentenced to serve 165 days of a six-year sentence, while his partner in crime, Candas Lashae Campbell, 28, was placed on probation for six years. They will be required to make $14,423 restitution to the victimized nurseries.
Their charges come after sheriff’s deputy John Underwood pulled over their Dodge truck on Manchester Highway last year.
“The truck was loaded down with nursery stock,” Underwood said, noting there were 32 trees on the truck. “Neither could explain where they got the trees or provide a bill of sale.”
The deputy said he looked closer and noticed one of the tarps in the truck had a label on it saying it belonged to Heather Farms on King Road in Morrison. The owner of the nursery was called to the scene of the traffic stop. The owner identified the trees as belonging to him. The stolen nursery stock from Heather Farms was estimated at $2,000.
The case was then turned over to the investigative division which raided the couple’s Francis Ferry property, serving a search warrant.
“We located numerous trees on the property,” revealed investigator Steven Carpenter, noting the various owners of the nurseries were called to the scene to identify their property.
In the end, the list of stolen nursery items found during the raid included $1,108 from Botanico Nursery, $770 from Dry Shave Nursery, $4,773 from Hale and Hines Nursery, $4,225 from Odom Nursery, and $500 from Randall Walker Farms.