Van Buren County sheriff’s investigator recovers 200 stolen custom-made knives

VAN BUREN COUNTY, Ark. – Van Buren County Sheriff Eric Koonce said on Tuesday that his department had recovered stolen knives.

Koonce said Sheriff’s Investigator Billy Thomas recovered 200 custom-made knives. The knives were valued at $21,000, Koonce said.

According to the sheriff’s office Facebook post, the knives were stolen from a vendor at the Chuckwagon Races in Van Buren County. The Labor Day event attracts large crowds to its rural location.

“We’re happy to serve Van Buren County,” Koonce said. “We’ll continue to work hand-in-hand with the Chuckwagon Races.

Koonce later referred to the races as “a wonderful event.”

The knives were located at a minor’s home in Jacksonville, Arkansas, Koonce confirmed. Charges are pending based on the outcome of the investigation, the post stated. Koonce added that because it involves a minor, the name is not being released. 

The sheriff’s department posted that the knife vendor was Craig Wood.

A post on Wood’s Facebook page, CW Handmade Knives & Leather Work of Greenbrier, cited the sheriff’s office post on its Facebook page, stating that 250 knives had been stolen.