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Staggering amount of stolen goods found in South Salt Lake man’s yard

Posted at 9:25 PM, Mar 06, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-07 16:43:39-05

SOUTH SALT LAKE - A man is behind bars and faces more than a dozen charges in a massive stolen property bust in South Salt Lake Tuesday.

38-year old Anthony Lee Cantrell faces 14 counts of Receiving Stolen Property, which adds up to a felony.

Police were tipped off to the stolen goods gold mine after receiving a complaint about an abandoned trailer.

South Salt Lake Police Public Information Officer Gary Keller said the trailer turned out to be stolen.

Officers then discovered the problem went well beyond the stolen trailer.

After permission from the property owner and a search warrant, they spent all day sifting through hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of stuff.

"I can’t even hardly believe how much money worth of property is in this thing," Keller said.

He said the items, which cover a wide range of everything imaginable, most likely came from burglaries up and down the Wasatch Front.

"It's unbelievable to me," Jack Erickson said.

He said he's a friend of the man who owns the home, and that the man had no idea one of his tenants was hoarding all the stolen items.

"I saw a Corvette here, I saw trucks, I saw Skidoos, I saw snowmobiles, I saw utility work trucks, I saw boats-- about everything you could think of was in this lot," Erickson said.

Police arrested Cantrell, and Charles Peckinpaugh who said he's Cantrell's roommate said he was surprised to hear of the discovery and allegations.

"I’ve heard him bidding on stuff on Ebay, and other deals like that," Peckingpaugh said, to explain what he thought of all the random items around his home.

Keller said they were able to find some of the rightful owners. Several people showed up throughout the afternoon and evening to claim their long-lost things.

"They walk over there, and sure enough that was it," said Paul Ord. He said his trailer disappeared from Bountiful in August.

Turns out it was sitting in Cantrell's backyard.

"I was shocked because I thought that trailer was long gone," he said.

It's the same story with Israel Sosa, who said his trailer was stolen from South Salt Lake in October.

"I was just thinking I was not going to find it anymore," he said. "When they called me, they really surprised me."

Police now have their work cut out for them, as they figure out who the rest of the items belong to.