|
Stolen Horse International, Inc.
PO Box 1341
Shelby, NC 28151
(704) 484-2165
stolenhorse@netposse.com
----------------------------
We need donations
to help you and to
continue to help others.
NEW!
SHI Online Auctions
NEW!
Mission Fish Registry
Home
About
NetPosse Information
Idaho Alert Network
Our Book: "Horse Theft,
Been There Done That"
About Debi
Donate
Fundraisers
Identification
Stolen Horses
Missing Horses
Stolen Tack
Stolen Trailers
Missing
Owners
Searching
for Horse
Disaster Planning
Katrina's Missing Pets
Auctions
Theft Prevention
Theft Recovery
Law Enforcement
Personal Theft Stories
Merchandise
Need a Speaker?
Speaking Schedule
Horse Protection Groups
Slaughter Information
Misc. Horse Stuff
Links
Link to Us
Contact Us
Terms of Agreement
Download free Reader to view many of the flyers on this site.
|
Never Give Up - Owner Finds Much Missed Horse After 11 Years
(continued)
Sale Agreement Gone Bad
After he contacted the authorities in Oregon, Vilencia called the Riverside County Sheriffs department in the hopes that Deputy Larry Sherman was still employed by them, and in the hopes that he would remember the horse theft case from 1993. As luck and fate would have it Deputy Sherman was still employed and he did remember the case! Now Vilencia had to try and get the Lincoln County Sheriffs Department to rescue his horse and arrest the suspected horse thief! Fortunately Vilencia had saved all of the paperwork, canceled checks, and letters that were associated with the theft case and had tons of ammunition and evidence to convince them with. Enter LT. Ed Stallard a Lincoln County Deputy and the person that Vilencia fondly refers to as the “Real Hero” of the case. LT. Stallard was the person at the Lincoln County Sheriffs Department that Jack Nobel and Roy Hyder took the case too and asked him for his help in building a case to make an arrest in the Horse theft and forgery crimes in this case.
LT. Stallard listened to Vilencia’s story and looked at his evidence and went right into action to build a case against the suspected horse thief who was living in his county with Vilencia’s stolen horse. Lt. Stallard worked very carefully and methodically and convinced the District Attorney's office that this was a prosecutable case and crime, even though the original theft was more than eleven years ago. LT. Stallard like Vilencia believed that this was a “continuing crime.”
The Lincoln County Sheriffs department then Subpoenaed the American Paint Horse Association Documents that were provided to them by the suspected horse thief.
Warrant Served
On December 15, 2004 after a search warrant was signed by the Grand Jury in Lincoln County, the DA’s office, and a Judge from the Lincoln County Court Lt. Stallard, Jack Nobel, and several other Lincoln County Sheriffs and Department of Brand Inspection employees served the search warrant on the suspected horse thief at her ranch and in Waldport/Seal Rock Oregon. They confiscated all files and forged paperwork on Vilencia’s stolen horse and they also found many pieces if incriminating evidence to be used against the suspected horse thief in the prosecution of the case. Including the original contract that was signed by her but never returned with payment and the other paperwork that Vilencia sent to her in the summer of 1993. They also rescued and confiscated Vilencia’s thirteen-year-old Buckskin mare “Ariel” now known as “Keno's Autumn Lark” the name given to her by the suspected horse thief, and they have since found out that the mare is once again pregnant and due to deliver her foal sometime in May 2005. They also rescued Ariel's two-year-old paint filly that the suspected horse thief tried to sell to Vilencia’s Private Investigator when she did her surveillance at the ranch where the horses were being kept.
Charges
After the sheriffs department served the search warrant on the suspected horse thief, rescued the horses, and presented its findings to the Lincoln County District Attorney's office Lt. Stallard and the Lincoln County DA’s office conducted a thorough investigation of the case that took nearly two and a half months. After the investigation was complete Chief Assistant DA Paulette Sanders and Lt. Ed Stallard made one more trip to the Grand Jury on March 2nd to ask for an indictment in the case against the suspected horse thief and signature forger. Mr. Vilencia traveled to Oregon and gave his testimony in the case before the Grand Jury as well. The Grand Jury returned the indictment quickly that same afternoon in the case. After a warrant was issued for her arrest, on Monday, March 7th Shaunda Lorraine Voyles, AKA Shandy L. Voyles, AKA Shandy L. Haden, 44 of Waldport Oregon surrendered and was booked into the Lincoln County Sheriffs Department Jail on suspicion of Felony Theft By Receiving in the First Degree, Felony Forgery in the First Degree, Felony First Degree Computer Crimes, and Misdemeanor Unauthorized use of someone else's Livestock.
Shaunda Voyles will be arraigned for these charges at the Lincoln County Court House in Newport, Oregon. Vilencia has filed a civil suit against Voyles as well for the custody of his horses and the monetary damages he has suffered as a result of the theft of his horse in the summer of 1993 and subsequent forgery of his name by Voyles in the summer of 2002. Vilencia says he will work closely with the Lincoln County Sheriffs Department and District Attorneys office on the criminal prosecution aspects of the case.
Vilencia said that he is glad that Voyles chose to move to a county and state where Law Enforcement and the District Attorneys office care about victim's rights. He also said he believes that having LT. Stallard and DA Sanders on his side has made all the difference in the world in how far he has come with this unbelievable case. He is grateful to Debi Metcalfe of Stolen Horse International for her guidance, help, and support over the past six months. Vilencia hopes to get custody of his stolen horse and her two-year-old filly as soon as possible due to the mare's pregnancy and delivery due date in mid May 2005, he hopes that Shandy Voyles will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law for her crimes, and Vilencia says that he plans to see both the criminal and the civil the case through to a successful end.
Vilencia is an Inspiration
Vilencia hopes to be able to help and inspire others who have had an animal stolen from them with his experience and never give up attitude. He also hopes that this case will prompt some changes in a few antiquated laws in this country concerning statute of limitations issues and penalties for this type of animal related crime. No doubt this will be an exciting and precedent setting case. Needless to say, Vilencia will continue to use “Google” as his main search engine on the Internet! When Vilencia was asked how he feels about actually finding his stolen horse after all of these years he said, "I am either the luckiest man on earth-or the most stubborn!”
For more information on this incredible story and case please contact:
Kit Townsend, Media Liaison for Stolen Horse International at:
(360) 825-3512
For interview requests with Rod Vilencia, the victim in this case please E-mail your request to StolenHorseHelp @aol.com and reference your desire to interview Mr. Vilencia. Also, please provide us with your name, daytime telephone number and contact information and we will put Mr. Vilencia in touch with you. He will respond to all who wish to speak with him about his story and this unbelievable case. Proving once again that miracles do happen, and that persistence pays off.
Back to Ariel's home page.
|
