A Pleasant Hill man has been charged with cutting trees without the permission of landowners.

Detective Doug Pilgreen of the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office said William Roland Massey III turned himself in this morning. He faces two counts of forgery of deeds or wills, two counts of cutting, injuring or removing another’s timber and one count of injury to trees, crops or land of another.

A joint investigation by the sheriff’s office, district attorney’s office and North Carolina Forest Service began in July when victims filed reports timber was cut on their land without permission.

Massey, 52, was jailed on $40,000 bond and has a September 8 court date.