The latest timber theft charges against a Pleasant Hill man involve approximately 20 acres of trees illegally cut in the Littleton-Roper Springs area, a North Carolina Forest Service investigator said today.
William Roland Massey III had paperwork for some timber he was cutting in the area, said Robert Smith, a law enforcement officer for the state Division of Forest Resources.
However, the victim in the case, where $70,000 worth of timber, mostly pine was cleared, never signed any agreements with Massey.
Smith said the landowner in the case didn’t learn of the cutting until neighbors called and asked if he was cutting timber. “I didn’t see any signs of paperwork. He (Massey) had some stuff close by but the landowner said he never signed anything.”
While Smith said a case could be made for investigating the timber crews which cut the trees, most companies act on good faith. “That’s why it would be wise to have some kind of documentation.”
The Forest Service and the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office have not determined whether Massey sold any of the timber he allegedly illegally cut.
Massey’s arrest last Wednesday marked the second time he has been arrested for timber theft since August.
Last week’s arrest came after an investigation by Lieutenant Bobby Martin into the illegal cutting of more than $70,000 worth of timber from the Littleton area.
Martin charged Massey with cutting, injuring or removing another one’s timber, which is a felony.
Massey, who was taken into custody and jailed on $30,000 bond, also faces similar charges in Warren County and awaits an April 13 court appearance.
In August, Massey was charged with 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.
In that case Massey had a legitimate contract to buy and have timber cut, the forest service said then.
Massey, however, also allegedly had loggers cut timber which wasn’t included in the agreement.
There was about $9,000 worth of timber cut illegally.
What led to Massey being caught in that case was someone saw decks were put down to allow machinery to move across often soft ground. The landowner was notified and the sheriff’s office was called.
It appears a deed was drawn for an heir of a property which said there was only one surviving heir, when there were several. The victim who signed the deed either did not realize there were other heirs or did not notify them.
Smith said neither case has gone through the court system yet.
