August 23, 2022
By: Dwayne Page
A 52-year-old man convicted of stealing a Caney Fork Electric Cooperative truck almost three years ago will learn his fate in December.
David Dewayne Anderson stood trial on August 10 in DeKalb County Criminal Court for theft of property over $60,000 and was convicted as charged by a jury made up of six men and six women. Judge Wesley Bray presided. Anderson will appear for sentencing on December 6 and could get from 8-12 years for the crime.
According to Assistant District Attorney General Greg Strong, the stolen truck, a 2017 F-350 was taken from the Warren County home of a Caney Fork Electric Cooperative lineman in December, 2019.
“Caney Fork Electric allows their linemen to drive the trucks home. The lineman, who testified at trial, said he parked the truck that afternoon and went inside and didn’t come back to it until that next morning and it was gone,” said Strong.
“The next day after the truck was reported stolen, Smithville Police found Anderson at the car wash in Smithville by Hardees washing the truck. Anderson had been seen getting out of the driver’s seat so it was clear he had been driving it and it appeared he was trying to pressure wash the decals off the truck. When confronted by police, Anderson said he had no knowledge of anything and that he was washing the truck only because it was dirty. As we understood it from interviews with other folks Anderson and a co-defendant, who has since died, were going to try to sell the truck,” said Assistant D.A. Strong.
Although Anderson did not testify in his own defense, he apparently maintained his innocence even though he was found in possession of the truck. “Through his own statements he put himself at the scene when the truck was taken but then came back and said he didn’t steal it but if you read the theft statute it doesn’t matter if you are in possession its theft and even though the truck was returned, the value of it is what determines the classification of the felony charge,” added Strong.
According to Strong, the stolen truck had some damage and company tools from the vehicle were missing along with a camera that had been mounted on the rearview mirror. Some tools found in the truck, Anderson claimed belonged to him.