A local law enforcement officer discovered his truck had been stolen late in April, only to find it in a Bogalusa, La., junk yard.

Pearl River County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Shane Tucker said the truck, a 1996 Ford Ranger, was reported stolen on April 22, from a home off of Pine Crest Drive in Poplarville. The truck belonged to a local law enforcement officer who began to look for it after discovering it was missing, Tucker said.

Tucker said the officer found the truck sitting on blocks at Rome’s Recycling, located just outside of Bogalusa. Sheriff’s Department detective Rob Williams took the case and was able to get information on who sold the truck to the junk yard from the records kept at the business. Further investigation discovered that the truck was sold to that individual by two Pearl River County residents, Billy Ray Briggs, 41, of 178 Oak Point, and 44 year-old Debra Ann Kendrick of 34 Oliver Davis Rd. Investigation into the case showed Briggs and Kendrick were responsible for the theft of the vehicle, Tucker said.

Williams located Briggs and Kendrick, who were already in custody with the Picayune Police Department on unrelated charges. Tucker said Williams went to that jail and served the suspects with felony taking of a motor vehicle warrants on Tuesday.

Tucker said the man who sold the truck to the junk yard also is facing charges in Washington Parish related to the theft, but an attempt to contact the agencies in Washington Parish concerning the charge, the suspect, and what charges were pressed against the junk yard, if any, were unsuccessful.

Tucker declined to identify the victim to protect the officer’s privacy.