Read more: Local, Crime, Men, Indicted, Stealing, Pinestraw
Four men have been indicted on charges they stole pinestraw.
Federal agents say Ray Miller, of Mt. Croghan, and Curtis Funderburk, Willie Harris and Alonzo Blakeney, all of Pageland, were charged with theft of government property.
Agents say the men raked and removed large amounts of pinestraw from the Carolina Sandhills National Wildlife Refuge near McBee, altering the protected wildlife habitat.
The estimated commercial value of the stolen pinestraw is approximately $5,000.
The maximum penalty each man faces is a fine of $250,000 and 10 years imprisonment.
