Two people from Terra Alta were taken into police custody after allegedly stealing items from vehicles parked at a Morgantown area auto repair shop.
On Feb. 20, West Virginia State Police Trooper A.L. Barnette was dispatched to a breaking and entering in progress at the Sube Shop on Green Bag Road, criminal complaints said.
Upon arriving on scene, Barnette said he saw Jeffery Wayne Jones, 35, and Nicole Lynn Friend, 32, standing near a vehicle in the shop’s parking lot and immediately detained the pair.
While performing pat downs on the duo, Barnette said he removed items from the pockets of both Jones and Friend that appeared to be stolen from vehicles. Jones admitted they had entered into one vehicle in the parking lot.
While on scene, Barnette also spoke with Nathan Wolfe, who was the caller who reported the crime after witnessing Jones and Friend entering vehicles.
According to the complaints, Wolfe stated he observed Jones and Friend enter seven vehicles parked in the Sube Shop’s parking lot. He also said he saw them unsuccessfully attempt to enter into upwards of 40 other vehicles that were locked.
Wolfe was able to show Barnette all seven of the vehicles the pair had gotten into, each of which the officer said was “unlocked and appeared to have been rummaged through.”
Barnette said while walking through the lot, he also located a coat on the hood of a vehicle which Wolfe said Jones was wearing when he arrived. The coat was wrapped around a drawstring bag that contained multiple items that appeared to have been stolen from vehicles.
Jones and Friend were each charged with seven counts of entry, without breaking, into vehicles, seven counts of attempt to commit a misdemeanor (petit larceny), one count of conspiracy, and one count of trespassing. Their bonds were set at $10,500. Jones was released after posting bond and Friend is currently being held at North Central Regional Jail.
