Jasper theft and residential burglary solved; police seeking suspect
What started as an investigation into the theft of a vehicle in Jasper turned into a multi-state, multi-agency case.
On August 25, Jasper Police Department Officer Chris Fischer received a report of a possible vehicle theft from Meyer Logistics in Jasper. The complainant informed Officer Fischer that he had received a phone call from the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department that a Meyer Distributing truck had been found abandoned in Louisville, Ky. As Meyer Logistics investigated the whereabouts of the truck, they determined it had been taken on August 21.
The stolen truck was equipped with a GPS tracking system and Fischer was able to trace the routes and locations the truck had been driven while it was stolen.
From this, Fischer learned that the truck had been driven to a residence in Paoli where it had stopped for a significant amount of time.
Officer Fischer contacted Indiana State Police Trooper Brock Werne and asked if he would check the residence in Paoli to see if there was a reason the truck had stopped there or if an additional crime had occurred at that address. Werne and State Police Sergeant Chad Dick checked the residence and finding that a barn on the property had been burglarized.
Werne contacted the property owners, who were current residents of Houston, Texas. Werne sent pictures of the barn and the property to the owners, who informed Werne that numerous items had been taken, including a 1987 Indian motorcycle and numerous pieces of home furnishing.
Werne and Fischer continued their investigation, following up on leads that eventually lead them to speak with 25-year-old Matthew Snyder of Bristow. They learned that he had assisted in stealing the truck from Meyer and was involved in stealing the items from the barn in Paoli. Officers also learned that the stolen items had been taken to a residence in Louisville.
On September 2, Werne and Fischer met with detectives from Division 1 of LMPD and went to the residence they believed the stolen items were located. Once there, officers were given consent to search the property and found all items stolen from the barn except for the Indian motorcycle.
Werne learned the motorcycle had been sold to another individual. He was able to contact the individual who bought it and he agreed to bring it back to the Louisville residence.
Friday, the Orange County Circuit Court issued arrest warrants for Snyder and a second suspect, 38-year-old Coy Crawhorn of Jasper, on charges of burglary and theft.
Snyder is being held in the Louisville Metro Corrections Center on unrelated charges and will be served with the warrant and extradited upon his release.
Crawhorn remains at large.
The Indiana State Police is asking that anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of Crawhorn contact the Jasper Post at 812-482-1441.
Investigating Agencies: Indiana State Police, Jasper Police Department, Louisville Metropolitan Police Department, Houston Texas Police Department, Crawford County Sheriffs Department
