Man arrested after stolen road grader found in Valentine

VALENTINE, Neb. – A 35-year-old South Dakota man is facing charges after a stolen road grader was found in Valentine last week.

According to the Valentine Police Department, authorities were alerted at 12:33 a.m. on June 26 that a road grader had been stolen from Mission, South Dakota. GPS tracking on the equipment showed it had crossed into Nebraska and was located within city limits.

Officers located the stolen grader in the 200 block of West Highway 20 in Valentine. The suspect, a 35-year-old man from South Dakota, was taken into custody and booked on charges of Theft by Unlawful Taking and Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle.

The incident was one of more than 50 calls for service handled by Valentine officers during the week of June 22^nd to June 28^th, which also included:

• 13 traffic stops
• 4 welfare checks
• 3 disturbances
• 2 animal complaints
• 1 non-injury accident
• 1 injury accident