WASHINGTON — A man has been arrested in connection with the theft of eight goats in Stafford County, Virginia.
The sheriff’s office says that Steven Calleja Jr., 33, of Sumerduck Road, in Fauquier County, was arrested Wednesday night and charged with two counts of felony larceny of an animal.
The sheriff office says that detectives got a tip on Tuesday night that Calleja had sold six of the eight goats reported stolen from Equestrian Drive and Green Acre Drive to a halal meat market in Fredericksburg. He allegedly tried to sell all eight.
The detectives got a search warrant and, along with Stafford animal control officers and the Fredericksburg police, retrieved the six goats from the market — the three taken from Equestrian Drive and three of the five taken from Green Acre Drive. The goats were unharmed and returned to their owners. Calleja was arrested in Fauquier County a short time later.
“Two families have been reunited with their beloved pets,” Stafford County Sheriff David Decatur said in a statement. “… We are hoping that someone out there knows the whereabouts of the other two goats so that they can also be reunited with their owners.”
If you know anything about the case, call the sheriff’s office at 540-658-4400 or Crime Solvers anonymously at 540-659-2020; you can also text “Stafford” and your tip to 274637 (CRIMES).
