Employees of Firestone Complete Auto Care in Springfield, OH, told police that they noticed a man stealing 12 tires from a tire rack in front of the store. The man was later arrested after trying to sell the tires at two separate locations in Springfield.
Below is the article as it appeared on the SPRINGFIELD NEWS-SUN website.
Man arrested after tire theft
By Matt Sanctis, Staff Writer
6:51 PM Friday, April 9, 2010
GERMAN TWP. — A Springfield man was arrested Friday, April 9, after he was accused of stealing 12 tires from a local business and trying to sell them at other tire shops around the county.
James Casey, 42, of 2125 Tecumseh Road, was arrested on a charge of theft after the incident at 9:20 a.m.
According to a report by the German Twp. Police Department, employees at Firestone Complete Auto Care, 1475 Upper Valley Pike, reported a man had stolen several tires from a rack outside the business and fled the scene in a blue Dodge Durango.
Officers from the Springfield Police Division stopped James’ vehicle near the intersection of Selma Road and Limestone a short time later after recognizing a description of the vehicle. Eight tires were still found in the Durango during the arrest, according to the report.
The report showed James was accused of trying to sell tires at two separate locations in the city before his arrest.
However, the report shows James told police he had purchased the tires in the lot at Kroger on Bechtle Avenue, paying about $100 for all eight tires. The report shows he did admit to trying to sell the tires after he bought them.
Rick Kempf, manager at Firestone, said he’s worked at the business for 17 years, and this is the first time someone has tried to steal tires from in front of the store. He said eight of the 12 tires were returned, and their total value was about $700.
He said he was working on a computer when employees noticed someone was taking the tires.
“All of a sudden I had two of my guys hollering at me,” Kempf said.
Kempf tried to follow the suspect’s vehicle to get a license plate number but was stopped at a red light.
To read this article on the SPRINGFIELD NEWS-SUN website, http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/crime/man-arrested-after-tire-theft-645143.html.