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| Serving Callaway County communities since 1875. | www.fultonsun.com | Saturday, July 04, 2009 |
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Thefts keep county law enforcement busy By ROGER MEISSEN The Fulton Sun
Officers investigated several thefts across the county - on Sept. 22 in Auxvasse, on Sept. 21 near Portland and on Sept. 17 in Williamsburg - and arrested suspects in all three cases. Deputies responded to Petro in Kingdom City at 8:42 a.m. Monday and apprehended Michael Behrens, 43, and Christina Barke, 28, both of Springfield. The pair was trying to sell stolen items out of a vehicle in the gas station parking lot when they were overheard peddling their wares on citizens band radio by Jeff Hale - a Warrenton Oil Company truck driver. “They were trying to sell CB radios over the CB, and Hale overheard a description of the stolen items that he recognized as his property,” Callaway County Sheriff Dennis Crane said. “He noticed the night before that those radios were stolen from three of the trucks at the Warrenton Oil Company.” Hale contacted CCSD and two deputies and a highway patrolman were dispatched, found them with the stolen items, and arrested the suspects. Both were transported to the Callaway County Jail where they remain on felony charges of receiving stolen property, and Behrens also is being held on probation and parole violations. Crane said Behrens and Barke were not charged with theft of the CB radios since they were allegedly stolen from Warren County, and that county has to bring those charges. Just the previous day officers dealt with theft in the Portland area. “Three juveniles were charged with theft of the ATV from the shed where it was stolen just east of Portland,” Crane said. “We've had some problems in that area - including some mailbox damage - but those suspects have not been connected with that crime yet.” A third incident on Sept. 17 involved a CCSD investigation of an abandoned vehicle and a stolen tractor-trailer near Williamsburg. Deputies responded to a 3 a.m. call to find an empty truck blocking the eastbound driving lane of Old Highway 40 near County Road 163. They found no one in the vehicle and stolen registration of a Warren County man. Later that morning, Shramek Farms reported a stolen tractor-trailer unit. The semi had been stolen and later returned to the farm. “What we know now is that it was moved and returned to as near the original spot as possible,” Crane said. “Even though it was returned, that doesn't change the fact that the vehicle was tampered with.” Investigations into both identified Harland Nathaniel Fry, 25, of rural Montgomery County, as a suspect and charged with the felony of tampering with a motor vehicle in the first degree. Other charges, including weapons charges and parole violations are also pending. Crane said this number of thefts isn't unusual. “It comes in spurts like this - we're averaging 30 to 40 calls right now,” Crane said. “It's not unusual to see thefts pick up as we approach Halloween and the holiday season.” |
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