March 2

12:54 a.m. – An officer pulled over a Chevy Camaro in the Marcus Theater lot after reportedly clocking it at 67 mph in a 45-mph zone on Hill Road. The 34-year-old driver allegedly told the officer he had not realized he was speeding. He stated that he had just left Twins Tavern but had not been drinking. After a field sobriety test, the man was arrested for driving while intoxicated. At the police station, he registered a .109 BAC. The legal limit in Ohio is .08.

12:45 p.m. – The loss prevention officer at Kohl’s reported that a 39-year-old man had stolen five fragrances by cutting them loose from their tester displays and concealing them inside his coat. The officer identified the suspect from photos taken after he shoplifted from a Delaware Kohl’s in 2018. The same individual is believed to have shoplifted from the Pickerington Kohl’s location on February 8 as well.

8:03 a.m. – A 21-year-old man was cited for driving without a license after an officer pulled over the Toyota RAV4 he was driving for traveling 62 mph in a 45-mph zone on Diley Road.

8:39 p.m. – A Honda Civic, with steam emanating from its engine, was abandoned in the right-hand lane of Hill Road near Turnberry Drive. The license plate on the vehicle was registered to a Jeep Compass.

March 3

3:00 a.m. – While on patrol, an officer noticed a Nissan Sentra parked sideways in the lot of the Shoppes at Turnberry with its engine running and lights on. The 30-year-old driver was found fast asleep behind the wheel. The officer knocked repeatedly on the window to wake him, but the man kept passing out again. Violet Township medics were called to administer aid.

After the medics cleared the suspect, the man was asked to take a field sobriety test, which he allegedly refused. The officer placed him under arrest for driving under the influence. At the station, he took two breathalyzer tests. For the first, he allegedly blew a .233 BAC, and for the second, a .241 BAC; however, the second was deemed a refusal due to an insufficient sample. The legal limit in Ohio is .08 BAC.

4:23 p.m. – A 79-year-old woman received a phone call from someone claiming to be “Christian Young from the Walmart Fraud Department, employee number 177202.” The caller stated that an unknown person had stolen her identity and opened several accounts in her name.

“Young” then transferred the woman to “Arun Bengalore of the Social Security Administration, employee number 234b819,” who allegedly told her she was being investigated for bank fraud, money laundering, and drug trafficking. He threatened that if she did not provide information about her bank accounts, a warrant would be issued for her arrest.

The woman hung up and called her bank, which confirmed the call was fraudulent and advised her to report the incident to the police.

March 4

1:51 p.m. – Police cited a 33-year-old man for driving without a license after his Kia Cadenza was allegedly clocked at 40 mph in a 25-mph zone on Hill Road near Opportunity Way.

6:19 p.m. – In Willow Pond, a Cane Corso (an Italian Mastiff) broke free from the boy walking it and allegedly attacked a Yorkshire Terrier in a yard. The Yorkie’s owner and a neighbor were able to separate the dogs.

8:33 p.m. – A Taurus G3 handgun was found at the intersection of Refugee Road and Springcreek Drive. The 9mm pistol, equipped with a Holosun red dot sight, was loaded with a 17-round magazine. Dispatch ran the serial number through the L.E.A.D.S. database, but no matches were found.

March 5

2:33 p.m. – Three individuals were suspected of shoplifting from Kohl’s. An officer allegedly arrived just as a 56-year-old man was exiting the store with his arms full of clothing and electronics. The man and woman accompanying him had not yet passed the cash registers and claimed they had no intention of shoplifting. All three were issued No Trespass orders.

5:07 p.m. – An officer was already in the Kohl’s parking lot when dispatch alerted him that an alleged shoplifter was leaving the store in a Chevrolet Malibu. The officer pulled over the vehicle and asked the driver to exit. The 26-year-old suspect reportedly had difficulty complying because he was wearing multiple layers of stolen clothing, many of which still had Kohl’s tags attached. The total value of the stolen merchandise was $780.84.

March 6

11:26 a.m. – The mother of a Diley Middle School student filed a police report after two boys at the school allegedly threatened to sexually assault her daughter.

4:36 p.m. – A white work van allegedly rear-ended a gray Nissan Kicks that was stopped on Windmiller Drive, waiting to turn onto Diley Road. The van driver fled the scene.

March 7

2:51 p.m. – Over the weekend, a Ridgeview Junior High student allegedly threatened a classmate in a group chat.

5:28 p.m. – An injured skunk was found on a yard adjacent to Diley Road. An officer dispatched the animal but informed the homeowner that disposal would be their responsibility.

5:50 p.m. – Two Pickerington Central students allegedly ditched school to spend the day at the library. Administrators removed them from the school bus and told them to find their own way home.

During their walk to Longview Acres, the boys allegedly discovered two unsecured scooters outside Circle K and rode them home. The scooters belonged to two Ridgeview students, whose mothers reported the thefts.

On March 11, the foster mother of the Central students returned to the high school to pick up three of her children who were “being emergency removed for the day.” She brought along the scooters, which she had found in her yard the prior week. Police returned them to their owners, neither of whom wished to press charges.

6:22 p.m. – A 25-year-old man allegedly stuffed athletic apparel into his backpack at Kohl’s before leaving on a bicycle. A patrol car caught up with him on Hill Road, and an officer activated lights and sirens. When the cyclist refused to stop, a second cruiser positioned itself about 75 yards ahead.

An officer exited the second cruiser and, armed with a taser, stood in the cyclist’s path. The suspect had the choice to ram the officer or stop—he chose to stop.

While recovering the stolen merchandise from the backpack, officers allegedly discovered drug paraphernalia. The suspect stated he had taken fentanyl and was not feeling well. An officer administered Narcan, then transported him to OhioHealth Pickerington. The man had an active warrant out of Reynoldsburg.

March 8

7:20 p.m. – A 30-year-old woman was arrested on a Fairfield County warrant after allegedly shoplifting clothing from Kohl’s.

4:32 p.m. – Police received a report of teenagers building a fire on the railroad tracks in Sycamore Creek Park. An officer arrived via the Simsbury Disc Golf Course but found that the kids had fled, leaving the burning logs on the tracks. Norfolk-Southern Railroad Corp was notified.

9:38 p.m. – An officer observed a Ford F-150 stopped at a red light on Refugee Road at the Stonecreek Drive intersection. The truck, straddling two lanes, allegedly took off at high speed when the light turned green and began weaving between lanes.

After a field sobriety test, the 62-year-old driver was arrested for operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated.

Police Reports February 24-March 1, 2025