HILLSBOROUGH, NC— Ronald D. Nixon Jr.,27,  an Orange county man was sentenced last week in Orange after being found this year with a dozen saddles stolen from a Canadian horse farm.

Superior Court Judge Carl Fox gave Nixon a suspended sentence of 14 to 26 months in prison for felony possession of stolen goods and possession of a firearm by a felon.  Deputies found two guns while searching his home, thus resulting in the second charge. His guns were surrendered to the sheriff’s office.

In 2005 Nixon was convicted on a breaking and entering charge in Orange County.

Nixon was ordered to serve 30 days in the Orange County Jail and supervised probation for two years. Nixon will also be on electronic house arrest for 90 days and only able to leave home to go to work.

Nixon was ordered to pay $1,830.78 to the owner of Park Lane Stables as reimbursement for advertising, travel and other costs incurred while searching for the stolen goods. Nixon cannot be within 10 miles of the stables,

In November, the owner of Park Lane Stables in Ontario, Canada, reported 13 saddles and other equipment stolen from a barn valued at $60,000. The equipment included an Antares, a Bates, Butet, and several other saddles that showed up on eBay.  The Ontario Provincial Police in Canada were able to trace the equipment to North Carolina and contacted the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.

Investigators found 12 saddles and tack in Alamance County in a storage unit with matching serial numbers.  Nixon and his girlfriend were caught on video surveillance unloading the property, according to Assistant District Attorney Lamar Proctor.

Nixon was not charged for the theft in Canada because he returned the saddles and was facing charges in North Carolina.  Nixon possibly would be facing more prison time if he had not tried to repair his mistake by returning saddles.

In the meantime, Nixon’s employer is holding his job until he gets out of jail. Nixon wants to put the incident behind him as soon as possible and move forward with his life.

RESOURCE: Chapel Hill News, BY Tammy Grubb, July 29, 2014, http://www.chapelhillnews.com/2014/07/29/4035009/ex-racehorse-trainer-sentenced.html?sp=/99/586/885/887/