Man sought for several thefts

Published 7:22 pm Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Cohutta Police Chief Ray Grossman says at least half a dozen thefts have been solved but the suspected thief is still at large.

Officers with the Cohutta Police Department, the Varnell Police Department and the Dalton office of Georgia Pardons and Paroles went to the residence of Ronald Franklin Henderson, 37, at 835 Chattanooga Road in Cohutta Wednesday morning to serve warrants for theft by taking and parole violation. Henderson was not there, but several items from recent burglaries were in the yard, Grossman said. Those included a baby bed, lighting from an electrical contractor and a utility trailer.

“We were able to return thousands of dollars worth of property back to their owners,” Grossman said. “We’ve solved about a half dozen crimes so far.”

Officers also found two large containers that could store up to 275 gallons of diesel fuel. Henderson is a suspect in the theft of about 120 gallons of diesel fuel from two Whitfield County school buses that were parked at Cohutta Elementary School over the weekend. Other warrants are expected to be taken, Grossman said.

Henderson is believed to have been driving a red Ford 150 that fled from Grossman Monday afternoon. That truck was pulling a stolen trailer and was leaking diesel fuel, Grossman said. The driver and a woman ran from officers in Catoosa County.

Henderson was released from prison in January on theft and obstruction charges, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections Web site. Anyone with information on him is asked to call the Whitfield County Sheriff’s Office at (706) 278-1233.