HUMBOLDT— Two vehicle thefts earlier this month in Humboldt may be connected to a larger set of crimes.
Chief of Police Bryan Dillow told the Register this morning a 25-year-old Anderson County man was arrested after a 2002 Chevy Tahoe belonging to Stephen Reed was found late Friday in a garage near a vacant house in Garnett. A 2012 Ford Taurus owned by Joyce Hudson also was stolen and found wrecked a few hours later.
“We also want Humboldt residents to know we recovered property that had been reported stolen from vehicles and garages here,” Dillow said.
The identity of the person arrested was withheld pending charges being filed. Dillow said others were thought to be involved in a series of auto thefts and burglaries that apparently encompass Allen, Bourbon, Anderson, Franklin and Neosho counties, as well as perhaps Montgomery and elsewhere in southeast Kansas.
“We’ve had two calls already this morning (shortly after 8 o’clock) from two other jurisdictions asking about property that was recovered in Garnett,” said Assistant Chief Jerry Daniels.
Dillow said it appeared the Tahoe was in a chop shop, a place where thieves dismantle vehicles to then sell their parts. “The tires and wheels already had been taken off,” he said.
The same time the two vehicles were stolen in Humboldt, a Jeep belonging to Iolan Thurman Flynn was stolen. An arrest in that case was made in Fort Scott — whoever stole the Jeep left a vehicle stolen in Fort Scott — and initially he was considered the prime suspect in the Humboldt thefts.
“I think we may have gotten a little ahead of ourselves,” Dillow said, although the person arrested in Fort Scott may be implicated with others.
“Our officers did a good job in the case and investigations are continuing,” Dillow said.
Vehicle recovered; probe widens
