Teen Charged in Southern Alberta Cattle Theft After Alleged Sales at Two Auctions
An 18-year-old faces multiple charges after RCMP say five longhorn cattle were stolen in a cattle theft reported on Feb. 7, 2026, and subsequently sold at Fort Macleod and Picture Butte auctions.
Opening summary
A southern Alberta youth has been charged following an RCMP investigation into cattle theft that began with a report on Feb. 7, 2026.
Diamond Valley RCMP say five longhorn cattle were taken from a pasture in the Eden Valley area and later moved through regional auction markets.
Police allege fraudulent ownership documents were used to effect the sales, prompting a broader probe into the transactions.
Details of the theft report
The investigation began when the registered owner contacted Diamond Valley RCMP after discovering five animals missing from an Eden Valley pasture.
RCMP say the stolen animals were longhorn cattle, and initial inquiries suggested they had been moved off the property before being offered for sale.
Investigators followed a paper trail that led from the pasture to sales reported at two southern Alberta auction yards.
Auction transactions and alleged forgeries
Police allege the cattle were sold at auction facilities in Fort Macleod and Picture Butte, where bills of sale were submitted at the time of the transactions.
RCMP officers contend several of the documents accompanying those sales are fraudulent and that names listed on some bills could not be verified.
Investigators focused on the auction records to trace buyers, sellers and the timing of the transactions as part of their evidence-gathering.
Charges laid and suspect identified
Southern Alberta resident Colin Starling, 18, has been charged in connection with the case, according to the RCMP.
He faces two counts of theft of cattle over $5,000 and two counts of trafficking in stolen property over $5,000, along with three counts of uttering forged documents.
Those charges remain allegations until proven in court, and police have not disclosed whether additional suspects or purchasers are under investigation.
Owner verification and investigative gaps
RCMP investigators said they were unable to verify several people named on the bills of sale and confirmed the registered owner did not authorize the sales.
Those verification failures prompted officers to seek further documentation and to compare auction records with livestock registries and ownership databases.
Authorities are working to determine how the animals were transported and whether any third parties were involved in the chain of sale.
Court schedule and next procedural steps
Starling is scheduled to appear in Diamond Valley provincial court on Aug. 25, 2026, where the matter will proceed through the local judicial process.
RCMP said the case remains active and investigators continue to follow up on leads and potential witnesses tied to the auctions and the sales paperwork.
Police have asked anyone with information about the Eden Valley thefts or the auction transactions to contact Diamond Valley RCMP.
The alleged cattle theft has highlighted concerns among rural producers about the security of livestock and the integrity of documentation used in sales, prompting calls from some in the farming community for tighter verification at auction houses and better coordination with registries.
