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Vaughn                                        James

A secret tracking device on a television stolen Tuesday from a Pigeon Forge rental cabin led Sevier County Sheriff's officers to the alleged thieves when they returned to sell a second stolen TV.

Matthew Vaughn, 24, of Kodak, and Justin L. James, 19, of Sevierville, have both been charged with two counts aggravated burglary by the Sevier County Sheriff's Office for their alleged involvement in the theft of two flat screen televisions from cabins in the Hidden Mountain Resort.

Sevier county Sheriff Ron Seals said that detectives investigating a Tuesday burglary at Hidden Mountain Resort in Pigeon Forge discovered a GPS tracking system was inside a television stolen from one of the rental cabins on the property. Following the devices signal, detectives tracked the television to a home on Thorngrove Pike in Jefferson County.

It was determined by detectives that Vaughn and an unidentified male, who would later be identified as 19-year-old James, sold the TV to the home's occupants, Tuesday afternoon.

Wednesday, detectives were alerted that Vaughn and James were returning to the Jefferson County residence to sell a second television to the occupants. Detectives intercepted the pair at the Jefferson county residence and determined that second TV was also stolen from the Hidden Mountain Resort.

Vaughn and James will have their preliminary hearing March 16 in Sevier County General Sessions Court.

Anyone with information on the two suspects is asked to contact Sevier County Sheriff's detective Jim Huddleston.  

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