NEW CASTLE, Ind. – Four Henry County men stand accused of stealing a SUV that had broken down on Interstate 69 in Madison County.
Late Wednesday night, an Indiana State Police tropped observed a group of men near the Interstate’s 215-mile marker, trying to load the SUV onto a trailer being pulled behind a pickup truck.
According to an ISP press release, the trooper, Blake Stephenson, was aware an abandoned vehicle had been reported in the area earlier in the week. He became increasingly suspicious after talking to the four men.
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Troopers were able to contact the 2001 GMC Jimmy’s owner, a Kokomo woman, who maintained she had given no one permission to tow the SUV.
Arrested, and later charged with auto theft in Madison Circuit Court 3, were Mooreland residens Delbert A. Cox, 40, and three New Castle men – Toby Scott Burk, 22; David E. Floyd, 38, and Clifton Robert Thompson II, 23.
Authorities determined the same men had stolen a broken down 2006 Ford Focus from the interstate on Tuesday night, the release said.
That car was recovered from outside Cox’s Wilkerson Road home, according to the release.
Cox has twice been convicted of theft, and has also been convicted of visiting a common nuisance and driving while suspended.
Floyd has been convicted of driving while intoxicated (four times), driving while suspended (three times) and driving as a habitual traffic violator (twice).
Thompson’s criminal record includes convictions for driving while intoxicated, possession of marijuana and possession of paraphernalia.
Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.