Tracks in the morning dew lead to stolen items, suspects

LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. (WTVQ) – Some dew on the ground helped a Laurel County man recover thousands of dollars worth of items stolen from his property.

The Laurel County Sheriff’s Office says, on Monday around 8:15 a.m., deputies were conducting a welfare check on two men who were seen walking away from a Jeep Grand Cherokee along I-75 when another man came up and said someone broke into his barn.

The man told deputies he followed footprints made in the morning dew to the Jeep on the side of the road.

He says he saw some of the items stolen from his barn inside the Jeep.

Deputies found additional items in the weeds near the vehicle they say the suspects told them they planned to come back and retrieve.

The items recovered included a gas can, air compressor, concrete saw, weed eater, and chainsaw and totaled around $2,490.

Deputies arrested 45-year-old Ralph Brown and 42-year-old Gary Anderson and charged them with theft by unlawful taking.