Gainesville man reportedly steals logging checks, truck from neighbors

Brandon Williams, 36, of Gainesville, is being held in the Ozark County Jail on a $10,000 cash-only bond in connection with a case in which he’s charged with two counts of stealing $750 or more, one count of stealing a vehicle and a count of failure to register as a sex offender. 

According to the probable cause statement in the case, on Oct. 8, a 70-year-old woman discovered that Brandon Williams, who is described in the report as her tenant and acquaintance, had collected her payment from a logging company for trees she had logged.

The logging company owner told officers that Williams had received approximately $6,000 in checks, which he gave to Williams after he told him that the woman had given him permission to get her checks from him. The woman told officers that she had not had any conversation like that with Williams, and that he had taken the money without her consent. 

The report says that the two checks totaled $6,823.91. Both the woman and the logging owner desired that charges be filed against Williams. 

At the time Sherman wrote the report, he noted that Williams had not returned to his home, which sits next door to the woman whose checks he reportedly took. 

“He vacated his residency and abandoned various items (dogs, misc. belongings, etc.) at the residence [the third victim] reported he was making mention of ‘starting over and moving to Mexico’ the week prior to his recent arrest for failing to register as a sex offender. His current residency is unknown to law enforcement and has not updated his sex offender registry since his recent departure.”

Another 71-year-old woman who lives at the home of the woman whose checks were stolen said Williams took her 2007 Chevy Silverado extended cab pickup on Oct. 5, and he had not returned it. She said she did not give him permission to use the truck, and she didn’t believe he’d return due to the ongoing circumstances. 

A note shows that the truck is listed on Williams’ sex offender registry with the victim listed as the owner. The vehicle was entered into the law enforcement databases as missing or stolen.