SUPERIOR COURT
One of two suspects indicted on multiple charges last month entered a guilty plea in Jones County Superior Court.
Frederick Lyman Rahn entered his plea June 1 and received a sentence that totaled 10 years with 180 days to serve in confinement. He will receive credit for time served from his Jan. 24 arrest. The remainder of the sentence is to be served on probation.
The breakdown of the sentence was 10 years on count 1: aggravated assault; five years each for counts 2-4: theft by receiving stolen property; and 12 months each on counts 5-6: theft of services. The counts are to run concurrently for a total of 10 years.
The defendant was represented by defense attorney Tim Lam, and the case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Cara Fiore. Chief Judge Brenda Trammell accepted the plea.
Rahn and Adam Harlan Sindell were indicted by a Jones County Grand Jury April 11 on charges of aggravated assault, two counts of theft by receiving stolen property and two counts of theft of services.
Sindell is currently residing in the Jones County Law Enforcement center. It was due to the search for Sindell that Rahn was arrested. Two others, Neila Danielle Lavendar and Seth Clinton Arnold, were also scooped up as part of that investigation.
The story of the arrests begins with a Jan. 2 report by JCSO Deputy Ayla Morris that stated she was dispatched to a home on Highway 57 for subject removal. She said she recognized Gregory Bass and confirmed he had three outstanding warrants. The property owner said he called law enforcement because he knew Bass was wanted, and he did not want him at the residence.
The deputy said in the process of taking Bass into custody, she noticed a bleeding wound on the rear left side of his head. Bass told her he was hit in the head by Sindell, and his story was confirmed by other witnesses.
Morris attempted to contact Sindell, who lived next door, but he was not found. The deputy then secured a warrant for Sindell for aggravated assault. The story of Rahn’s arrest began with a Jan. 23 report by JCSO Deputy Nolan Sullivan, who was dispatched to a Masseyville Road address at approximately 8 a.m. in reference to a suspicious incident. Sullivan said he was told by the complainant that he encountered two subjects riding down the road on a Kubota side-by-side that he suspected of stealing property.
The complainant said, when he approached the subjects to ask what they were doing, the driver attempted to run over him and drove off after hitting him. The victim took a picture of the offender, which he shared with Sullivan. The driver was identified as Sindell, and a warrant was secured for him for the charge of aggravated assault.
A second Jan. 23 report by Sullivan states that he, Lt. Wesley Ransom and Deputy Joseph Caldwell went to Sindell’s home at 11:40 a.m. to serve the aggravated assault warrants.
Sullivan said the officers had negative contact with the offender. He said Ransom made contact with Lavendar and Rahn in a mobile home behind the residence. A check of Lavendar showed she had an active warrant in Jones County, and she was taken into custody.
Sullivan said the officers found several trailers on the property and started running the plates though dispatch. He said the first two trailers came back as stolen out of Bibb County, and a U-Haul trailer found later was also reported as stolen in Bibb County.
Sullivan said JCSO Investigator Crystal Murphy obtained a search warrant for the residence and surrounding property.
Sullivan said they started running serial numbers of power tools and equipment found on the property, but nothing else returned as stolen. He said, however, it was discovered that the residence was being powered by stolen electricity from a powerline and water was being stolen from a county fire hydrant.
The deputy said Bibb County Investigator Shaun Bridger arrived and confirmed the trailers were stolen out of Bibb County.
Sullivan said water and power company personnel came to the residence and confirmed that the utilities were being stolen.
Additional warrants were secured for Sindell for theft of services and receiving stolen property, and warrants were also secured for Rahn for being a party to the crime of aggravated assault, theft of services and receiving stolen property.
A Jan. 26 Facebook post by Sheriff Butch Reece stated it was determined the primary residents at the house were Sindell and Rahn.
He said, as the investigation continued into the stolen property, it was discovered a third male, Arnold, was also involved. Reece said the theft ring included Twiggs and Wilkinson counties as well as Bibb and Jones. He said deputies from all four agencies went to Arnold’s residence in Bibb County because of several outstanding warrants.
The sheriff said the next morning, Rahn was spotted in the Highway 57 area and was taken into custody without incident for his outstanding warrants.
Reece thanked all the agencies involved in the arrests for their hard work.
