A trio of Kentucky men is not yet in custody after being indicted by a federal grand jury June 23 in connection with conspiracy to steal railroad tracks and sell them in another state.
Assistant United States Attorney Thomas Ryan of Charleston confirmed that the three men are scheduled for arraignment July 14 in Charleston. Ryan is the federal prosecutor in the case.
The grand jury met in Huntington.
Those charged have been identified as Clarence A. Meadows, 65, of Paints-ville, Ky.; Thomas G. Ham-ilton, 43, Pikeville, Ky., and C. Roby Meadows, 34, of Mt. Sterling, Ky.
According to the indictment, the thefts totaled an estimated $190,000 loss to the Norfolk Southern Railway Corporation. The items were stolen from the old Kermit side track at Upper Burning Creek, south of Kermit and the Mingo County, W. Va., boundary, and not far from the Martin County, Ky., line.
Norfolk Southern Special Agent Dave Farley at Williamson is credited with solving the thefts of railroad tracks and other track materials during the period, July 2004 to November 2004. He had been working on the rail theft case for the last several years.
The two Meadows and Hamilton are accused of transporting the stolen track and other materials to Salyersville, in Magoffin County, Ky. and selling them for scrap value.
The indictment charges the three men with two counts of aiding and abetting the transportation of stolen goods across state lines after they were stolen on Aug. 23, 2004 and Sept. 22, 2004.
The items stolen Aug. 23 were valued at $9,500, while the Sept. 22 items were valued at $8,400.
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