BLAND  — James E. Czeschin, 41, of Bland, has been charged with receiving stolen property and possession of a controlled substance following a search of his property on Dec. 21.

Deputy Dennis Sutton noted in his probable cause statement that the Gasconade County Sheriff’s Office was told that Czeschin was in possession of a tractor reported stolen from Crown Power & Equipment in Mt. Sterling.

Gasconade Det. Lynde Mantels confirmed the tractor was on the property but had been burned. He located a serial number on the engine block, which matched the tractor reported stolen.

After securing a search warrant, Osage County and Gasconade County deputies contacted a male who was alone on the property. They permitted him to secure his dog, which he said would bite. While securing the dog, The man fled the scene on foot into a wooded area and evaded law enforcement. Sheriff Mike Bonham said he anticipates charges against the individual who ran from law enforcement.

Officers began searching the property, including the residence. Deputies saw a crystalline substance in plain view on a table in the living room. Officers executed a secondary search warrant, during which they found a glass smoking device and a small plastic bag containing a crystalline substance that field-tested positive for methamphetamine.

While the search of the residence was being conducted, Czeschin drove up to the scene. Mantels read him his Miranda warning and briefly spoke with him about the tractor. Czeschin claimed he located the burnt tractor in Third Creek on his property and used his tractor to pull it onto his property.

However, when confronted about the burnt tractor on his property, Czeschin changed his story, saying another person brought the tractor to his property and he did not ask any questions as to where it came from.

Judge Sonya Brandt set bond at $15,000 cash or surety after Sutton reminded the court of Czeschin’s past.

The defendant has a lengthy criminal history that includes several felony convictions, including possession of a controlled substance (Maries County, 2020), tampering (Osage County, 2011), possession of a controlled substance (Maries County, 2011), second-degree burglary (Osage County, 2020), distribution/delivery controlled substance, 2015), possession of a firearm (Osage County, 2015), as well as a pending charges for receiving stolen property and possession of controlled substance in Osage County.