Deputies arrest two in logging truck theft

Bartholomew County Sheriff’s deputies arrested two people after a passerby saw a logging truck stuck in the mud near an abandoned house and reported it as suspicious.

Ethan Spray, 22, and Shayla Ulrey, 19, both of 2272 Indiana Ave., were arrested on theft charges after sheriff’s deputies arrived at about 7:50 a.m. Thursday and found the truck stuck in the mud in the 3600 block of Deaver Road, said Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department Capt. Dave Steinkoenig.

Deputy Todd Noblitt went to the Deaver Road address and found Ulrey inside a large yellow box truck with Bane Logging on the side which was stuck in the yard, Steinkoenig said. The vehicle was running, but was stuck, with Spray was outside the truck, he said.

About $10,000 worth of high-end logging tools including an air compressor, welder and chain saws were strewn about outside the truck, Steinkoenig said.

Using the name on the side of the truck, Noblitt and Steinkoenig called the company in Brownstown and learned that the truck was supposed to be at a job site on State Road 11 just south of the Bartholomew County line.

The Jackson County Sheriff’s Department went to the trucking company in Brownstown and took a stolen vehicle report after the company determined its truck was missing.

For more on this story, see Friday’s Republic.