Walnut Tree Theft Leads to 15-Month Prison Sentence for Des Moines Man

A Des Moines man has been sentenced to 15 months imprisonment for the theft of walnut trees in Polk and Marion Counties.

Randall Todd Walker, 50, of Des Moines, cut and removed 32 black walnut trees from property under the control of the Army Corps of Engineers and the Department of Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, United States Attorney Nicholas A. Klinefeldt said in a news release.

In our area, the trees were taken from the Neal Smith National Wildlife Reserve and the Sycamore area. The other areas were the downtown Riverside area in Des Moines and the Lake Red Rock area in Marion County, according to the news release.

U.S. District Judge John A. Jarvey also ordered Walker to serve three years of supervised release following incarceration and to pay restitution in the amount of $56,225 and to pay a $100.00 special assessment for the Crime Victims Fund, according to the news release.