On Tuesday, October 11th at 8 p.m. deputies in the Holiday City area (south of Pioneer) were on patrol looking for a stolen 2000 Black Ford Focus from the village of Montpelier. Deputies located the vehicle on County Road 15 at County Road N.30 and attempted to stop the vehicle. The driver stopped the vehicle on County Road 15 just south of the intersection and fled on foot into a corn field.
Deputies on scene began to set up a perimeter and contacted Sheriff Steve Towns. Sheriff Towns called for additional deputies to respond and assist. Officers from the Pioneer, Montpelier, West Unity and Stryker Police Departments; Ohio State Highway Patrol, along with fire department personnel from Kunkle and Montpelier assisted at the scene.
The Ohio State Patrol also brought in their helicopter from Columbus to search the area. The helicopter was outfitted with thermal imaging camera gear that allowed the pilot to see through the corn fields and dense woods. The area was checked both by ground and air, but the driver was never located.
In recent weeks there have been over a dozen vehicles in the Montpelier area stolen. Five of those vehicles have been recovered in the Holiday City area alone. Deputies have taken their own initiative to work on catching the person or persons involved by spending extra time patrolling and investigating the thefts and recovered vehicles in the area.
A description of the driver is a white male, 5 foot 10 inches, about 150 pound. The suspect had on running shoes, blue jeans, a gray jacket with navy blue sleeves and a ball cap.
If you have any information on this case, please contact the Williams County Sheriff’s Office at 419.636.3151. Your information will be kept confidential.
(Information Courtesy Of The Williams County Sheriff Department)