2 arrested in Fayette County after stealing guns, van, bicycle: sheriff

FAYETTE COUNTY, Texas - Two men are in custody in Fayette County after they allegedly stole multiple firearms, a van, and a bicycle and caused property damage all in one day.

39-year-old Roberto Luna and 31-year-old Cody Powell of Halletsville were arrested June 3. Luna is facing charges of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and unlawful carrying a weapon and Powell has been charged with evading arrest and possession of stolen property.

Burglary charges are pending for both men.

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The Fayette County Sheriff's Office says around 8:10 a.m. on June 3, it received a 911 call about property damage caused by an unknown vehicle backing into a tree while leaving a property on Gebert Road.

While deputies were responding to that call, dispatch received another call about a suspicious vehicle on Salem Freyburg Road, which intersects with Gebert Road. Deputies arrived and found an unoccupied Ford Fusion and saw a man in dark clothing running in the pasture. A citizen also reported another man hiding in the grass who was detained by deputies.

Dispatch then received another call about a stolen white van from a Schulenburg business which matched the description of the vehicle that caused the property damage. The van was later found abandoned on Salem Freyburg Road.

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Deputies also learned that the residence on Gebert Road where the property damage had occurred had also been burglarized, and multiple firearms were stolen.

Multiple agencies responded, and a reverse 911 call was released to a four-mile radius of where the second man had been seen running. A drone was also deployed to search the area alongside deputies.

Later that same day, dispatch received a call about a suspicious person walking on Salem Freyburg Road. Investigators found the man riding a bicycle which was later reported stolen. The man left the bicycle behind and fled on foot into a pasture, but was taken into custody.

All the weapons reported stolen were recovered by deputies the next day in the field where the two men were trying to evade arrest.