Thanks to a collaborative effort between law enforcement agencies, two Brahma bulls are now reunited with their family.

After allegedly being stolen around 5:30 a.m. March 23, the bulls’ owners Benny and Krissy Pinckard received word the bulls, Antonio and Arnold, had been located. The bulls were found just off Needmore Road, in the woods, and were still inside the trailer in which they were stolen.

State Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries Ron Sparks said the law enforcement agencies used sophisticated surveillance and technology to help find the bulls, and warned people who were coming to Alabama with the intention of theft to think twice.

“We used some sophisticated surveillance in order to find these bulls, and we are going to continue to use it. We know that this is a deep crime ring, and we have put a lot of people in jail,” Sparks said.

“We are going to put more people in jail, too. I’ve said it once and I will say it again, if you steal from our farmers, we will catch you.”

Thanks to the new technology used, the law enforcement was able to track down the suspects and find the bulls.

“We would have never caught these people if we did not have the technology we were able to use. Our law enforcement agencies worked together and found these bulls very quickly,” Sparks said. “That’s commendable.”

Kellie Bowen, around 36, and Lenny Parker, 40 or 41, both of Georgia, have been apprehended in Georgia and will be charged in Georgia for the thefts.

Krissy Pinckard said things had not been the same since the bulls were stolen from their catch pen Sunday night or early Monday morning. “Every time Benny tried to talk about them, the tears would just stream down his cheeks,” Krissy Pinckard said. “They weren’t just bulls. They were part of the family.” Pinckard said she was confident the bulls would be found.

“We contacted the news media and the law enforcement and anyone else that we thought might be able to help. We were optimistic Arnold and Antonia would be found, because they were well-marked with our brand,” Pinckard said. “We knew that the Pike County’s Sheriff’s Department wasn’t going to rest until the crime was solved.” Sparks said he is committed to doing whatever it takes to protect Alabama residents from theft.

“I am committed to spending and doing whatever it takes to stop folks from stealing. We are going to use every angle and every ounce of technology that we can to catch these folks, and I want them to know that,” Sparks said. “You better go somewhere else if you want to steal livestock, because you will be caught here.”

Sparks wanted to commend all law enforcement agencies that helped find the bulls and catch the criminals who stole them.

Pinckard, too, wanted to thank everyone involved with the bull’s recovery.

“We want to thank everyone involved in solving this crime. Arnold and Antonio are back home and it’s because so many people worked so hard to solve this crime,” Pinckard said. “We thank them all.”