MIDLAND, TEXAS — A 36-year-old Georgia man who kept his employer’s semi-truck after being fired, pulled the GPS device and disappeared for more than a month, was tracked down in Georgia through Flock license plate reader cameras and arrested on a felony theft charge.
Samuel Jonathan Parker took possession of a blue 2020 International sleeper-cab truck owned by Platinum West Corporation Inc. while working out of the 10000 block of West County Road 72 in Midland County, Texas. When his employment ended in late August, Parker kept the truck.
On August 28 the truck’s GPS was removed and left in Odessa, Texas. The company sent Parker text messages on August 30 notifying him his employment had been terminated and that he was required to return the truck, stating he did not have permission to use it for any reason other than returning it. The company repeated the demand on August 31 and gave Parker 10 days to comply.
Detectives with the Midland County Sheriff’s Office ran the truck’s license plate through the Flock license plate reader system. On September 9 the system returned a hit at Highway 44 and Interstate 20 in Georgia. Investigators compared the image to a photograph of the truck and confirmed it was the same vehicle.
By September 29 the truck still had not been returned. The company estimated its value at $52,000. Detectives called Parker, who answered but did not respond when asked to identify himself and then hung up.
Parker was arrested and charged with theft of property valued at $30,000 or more but less than $150,000, a third-degree felony. His bond was set at $100,000.
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