1973: Cattle rustlers strike teen near Donahue

June 27, 1973: An attempt by cattle rustlers to steal cows from the Harold Kearney farm northwest of Donahue was thwarted thanks for 17-year-old Richard Rank of Bettendorf. Rank spotted the cattle rustlers and attempted to chase them down, but one of the thieves struck him in the head with a rifle as they attempted to escape. Cattle theft had been plaguing Iowa throughout the spring, and it was thought these thieves had planned to kill and butcher a cow and carry the meat away by helicopter. Rank said a similar incident had taken place at his father’s farm near DeWitt.