Toms River Woman Charged In Horse Thefts From Jackson, Howell Farms: Police

JACKSON, NJ — A Toms River woman has been charged with stealing a pair of horses she used to own after a court settlement did not go in her favor, police said.

Katie. D. Meo, 25, whose last known address is in Toms River, has been charged with third-degree burglary and theft, criminal mischief and criminal trespass in conneched with the theft of a horse from Crack of Dawn Farm on Grawtown Road in Jackson, Capt. Steven Laskiewicz said. Sgt. Christian Antunez said she faces similar charges in connection with the theft of a second horse from a Howell Township property.

The thefts happened during the overnight hours of late June 7 and early June 8, authorities said. Laskiewicz said that in the Jackson theft, reported at 9:15 a.m. on June 8, the fence on a remote part of the property was cut so the person could gain access and the horse taken.

The stolen horse, which previously belonged to Meo, had been the subject of a now-settled court dispute, Laskiewicz said.

While investigating, Police Officer Christopher Wasnesky learned that a second horse that Meo previously had owned was reported stolen in Howell, Laskiewicz said.

As the investigation progressed and reports of the incidents circulated on social media, both horses, named Nico and Tony, were located being boarded at a stable in Pennsylvania and information was later obtained indicating Meo, the suspect in the thefts, had contracted and paid to have the horses boarded there, Laskiewicz said.

Wasnesky prepared warrants charging Meo on June 12 and then discovered Meo was currently lodged in the Camden County Jail, and sent a detainer to them for the Jackson charges, Laskiewicz said.

Both horses have been returned to their owners, the owners said on social media.

Photo of a horse on a farm in Upper Freehold Township; this is not one of the horses that was stolen. Photo by Karen Wall

Updated at 12:50 p.m. June 14, 2017, with confirmation of the Howell Township charges. — Karen