Federal authorities are accusing a man in an alleged digital cattle rustling scheme with four counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.
A grand jury indicted Stewart Kile Williams on the charges on Aug. 21.
Court documents show that Williams allegedly defrauded his former employer, Jones Alto Colorado Ranch, which is headquartered in Brownsville, by orchestrating a fraudulent cattle sale to Wyatt Ranches of Texas, which is based in Edinburg.
According to the indictment, the Wyatt Ranch purchased cattle from the Jones Ranch in 2015, and Williams was in charge of managing the transfer of cattle related to the purchase.
During and after the sale, Williams allegedly told Jones Ranch that the Wyatt Ranch wanted to purchase more cattle, which was not true, according to the criminal charges.
Williams is accused of sending emails purporting to support Wyatt Ranch’s desire to purchase more cattle and is accused of using another person’s identity to send those emails, according to the indictment.
He made his first appearance in court Thursday and is being held without bond pending further court proceedings, court records show.
