Stolen bulldozer recovered in McIntosh County

Stolen bulldozer recovered in McIntosh County

By Ken Childers

ONL Editor

A piece of heavy machinery stolen from a local business in late June was found last week in a small town located about 40 miles from Okemah.

On June 29, Been Dozer Service of Okemah reported that a D5N dozer had been stolen from the company’s disposal office, which is located off Highway 56 in Seminole County. The theft possibly occurred on Saturday, June 27.

Shortly after the theft, Richard Shepard, an employee of Been Dozer, took to social media, asking for the public’s help in locating the dozer. “It was the one I ran most of the time, now I’m out of a job and I’m mad,” Shepard posted.

The company offered a cash reward for the return of the dozer and the Seminole County Sheriff’s Department put the machine’s serial number into its database, so equipment could be checked when stops were made. The company also used an airplane to search for the dozer from the air.

According to owner Elizabeth Been, the dozer was eventually found intact in McIntosh County.

“I am so happy to report the dozer was found in piece,” Been said last week on social media. “A local person in Hanna, Oklahoma saw the dozer near an old well site. When we arrived it had been moved. We tracked it down. With the help of McIntosh deputies we were able to recover the dozer.”

Hanna is located about 20 miles south and east of Henryetta.

Shepard said in a later post that he could once again start “playing in the dirt,” because the dozer had been recovered. “Sometimes you think there’s no way, but it works out sometimes. Always keep your faith up in people and the lord.”