A Texarkana man accused of writing a hot check for a travel trailer and tricking a local business out of an expensive cooker is facing felony theft charges in Bowie County.
Gerald Pinham, 65, allegedly wrote a $15,000 check July 25 to Gregg Orr auto for a down payment on a 2018 Eagle 27.5 RLTS travel trailer knowing that he didn’t have the cash in his bank account to cover the amount, according to a probable cause affidavit. Pinham allegedly told Orr to “run the check again” after being contacted by Orr about the insufficient funds.
“Pinham told me that he wasn’t an outlaw, that he only broke and run in the camper when they stopped his check,” the affidavit states. “He went to Shreveport, then Mississippi and ended up in Kansas City. After he had a crash involving the trailer and wanted to come back to Texarkana he contacted Orr so they could retrieve the trailer and give him a ride to Texarkana.”
The trailer was allegedly valued at $41,743.64 at the time he took possession from Orr in July 2018. Pinham is facing a third-degree felony theft charge for the alleged trailer theft and could receive two to 10 years in prison if convicted.
Pinkham is facing a state jail felony theft charge for allegedly tricking Dot’s hardware out of a trailer mounted smoker and fish cooker valued at more than $4,000 in September. Pinham allegedly told staff at the store that he was renting the cooker for a grand re-opening at Blackburn’s Used Cars. Staff at Dot’s recognized Pinkham as a Blackburn’s employee.
When the cooker wasn’t returned on time, Dot’s contacted Blackburn’s and elarned that Pinham hadn’t worked for Blackburn’s in “quite some time.” Pinkham allegedly told investigators that he took the cooker to get back at Blackburn’s. If convicted of theft involving the cooker, Pinkham faces six months to two yeras in a state jail.
Pinkham is scheduled to appear before 202nd District Judge John Tidwell next month for a pre-indictment hearing.
