Police warned residents to be vigilant on June 14 after two vehicles stolen from Macedonia ended up in a police chase. One of the stolen vehicles, a white Dodge Ram, was later used in a burglary.
The owner of the Dodge Ram left his keys in the ignition. He also left his wallet and a bag of tools in the truck, according to police.
“Macedonia is fortunate in that we don’t have much theft in our residential areas,” Macedonia Police posted on its Facebook page on June 14. “However, occasionally we have people that come into the residential areas with the intent to steal. Let’s not make it easy for them,”
Police also asked residents to lock vehicles when parked and to not leave the keys or other valuables in them.
The warning came one day after a Maserati, with a dealer plate, was stolen from a home on Park Ridge Lane and the Dodge Ram from a home on Mig Court.
The vehicles, along with a Lincoln SUV eluded police in a chase which included officers deploying stop sticks to flatten the car tires.
The pursuit began shortly after 4:14 a.m. when an officer spotted three vehicles parked near the intersection of Shepard and Meadow Wood roads. The officer began backing up to the vehicles which were stopped with headlights on, according to police. The vehicles drove away.
“The vehicles immediately went north on Shepard and when they got to the intersection of Shepard and State Route 82 they stopped,” according to the police report. “It appeared they were not sure where to go.”
The vehicles drove west on State Route 82 as police began pursuit. The vehicles made a right on Freeway Drive, according to police.
The Dodge Ram and the SUV turned onto I-271 North while the Maserati continued north on Freeway Drive. Police pursued.
Stop sticks were deployed on I-271 and at least one of the vehicles hit them but did not stop, according to police.
Police netted the license plate of the Dodge Ram into the computer and contacted the owner who did not know the vehicle had been stolen, according to police.
The pursuit was called off a short time later.
The truck was used just before 5 a.m. to “forcibly enter” a clothing store on Tuttle Road in Shaker Heights, according to Shaker Heights Police.
The several unknown occupants used the truck to enter the store and remove a variety of items, police said.
The incident is under investigation. There was no further information available.
UPDATE
According to Shaker Heights Police there were no descriptions because the folks were hooded and masked.
The truck from Macedonia was driven through a Window and driven away.
The folks took about $30,000 worth of goods from the clothing store.
