Norwalk police seek video after vehicle theft

NORWALK — Norwalk police are asking residents for video footage as they continue investigating the theft of a motor vehicle reported last Thursday. Norwalk police said the vehicle was stolen from a residence on Newton Street at about 6 p.m., and that the vehicle was later recovered in Lancaster, Ohio. Police said the initial investigation identified a suspect from Lancaster who had been released from the Huron County Jail at about 1:30 p.m. that day and was last seen on video footage at about 2:30 p.m. The suspect, who police did not identify in the post, was later arrested in the Lancaster area away from the stolen vehicle on an unrelated Franklin County warrant, according to police. Police said the video footage from a nearby Newton Street residence, immediately before the vehicle theft, showed the suspect wearing a baseball cap and the same clothing he was wearing when he was released from Huron County Jail. Police said the baseball cap was not in his possession at the time of his release. Investigators believe the suspect might have entered other vehicles during the roughly four hours he was unaccounted for while making his way from Shady Lane Drive to Newton Street. Detective Matt Hamernik said the police are working to backtrack the suspect's movements and determine whether any additional crimes occurred in Norwalk that might not yet have been reported. Residents with video footage from the area or information related to the case are asked to contact the Norwalk Police Department at 419-663-6780.