July 20
3:41 a.m. An officer on patrol watched a man run across the intersection and climb into a Ford Mustang stopped in a right-turn lane from Blacklick-Eastern Road to northbound Hill Road. The Mustang took off toward Reynoldsburg and ran a red light to enter westbound Interstate 70. Losing sight of the vehicle, the officer returned to where he had first spotted the man running in the street.
Given that there had recently been a string of vehicle break-ins at the Comfort Inn on that corner, the officer wanted to check the hotel lot for broken windows. Finding none, he prepared to leave the area when he noticed a Ford Explorer stopped in the left-turn lane from southbound Hill Road onto Blacklick-Eastern, even though the turn arrow was green. The officer watched as the Explorer sat through another full cycle of the traffic signal and still did not move.
Upon closer investigation, the officer discovered that the Explorer was running but unoccupied. An error message on the dashboard indicated that there was an issue with the “shift system.” The vehicle had been stolen from Ashville.
Using FLOCK cameras, dispatchers located the Mustang, which also had been stolen from Ashville.
9:32 p.m. A 22-year-old man hit a parked car in the Pickerington Ridge Apartments and then fled the scene.
11:50 p.m. Police spotted a silver SUV in the lot of the Pickerington Kindergarten Center (formerly Diley Middle School), but the vehicle took off before officers arrived. A 17-year-old boy was also at the school but said that he was not associated with the SUV.
July 21
7:11 a.m. A resident reported that his car had been stolen from the Pickerington Ridge Apartments. It was later recovered by the Pickaway County Sheriff’s Office.
10:32 a.m. A 24-year-old Lancaster woman told police that a red vehicle hit her car on Diley Road near Long Road and then left the area.
12:12 p.m. A red truck, possibly a Ford F-150, struck another vehicle in the parking lot of Donato’s Pizza and then took off.
1:55 p.m. Officers came upon a vehicle in the parking lot of the Comfort Inn & Suites with broken windows. It was determined that the vehicle had been stolen from Columbus.
July 22
12:26 a.m. Police arrested a 23-year-old Pataskala man on a warrant out of Franklin County after an officer discovered him sleeping in a Honda Accord parked near the Corner Bar & Grill.
4:14 a.m. Police cited a 23-year-old man with failure to maintain reasonable control after he ran a stop sign near Columbus Street and Long Road, then hit a tree, fence and deck.
12:32 p.m. A witness reported that someone was tossing kittens from a silver Chevrolet Malibu traveling on Diley Road near Pickerington Ponds Drive. Police were unable to locate the car, but they did find two deceased kittens.
July 23
12:15 a.m. After a traffic stop on Hill Road near Tussing Road, police cited a 22-year-old Columbus man for driving without a license.
3:41 p.m. A 27-year-old Columbus man hit a mailbox in Residence at Turnberry, then left the scene.
July 24
9:30 p.m. Dispatchers received a call from a woman locked inside the pool facility of the Residence at Turnberry. When officers arrived, the 43-year-old Columbus woman told them that earlier in the day, she had arrived for a job interview, but the rental office was locked, so she decided to look for staff at the pool. A resident exiting the facility held open the gate for her.
After determining that no staff were present, the woman attempted to leave but discovered that the gate required a keycard. She waited several hours for someone to open the gate before calling police for help.
Police reached the manager of the complex, who arrived to unlock the gate. The manager then asked the officers to issue the woman a “No Trespass” order, as the complex was not hiring and nobody knew the woman.
July 25
1:20 p.m. A bronze-colored Honda reportedly struck another vehicle on Hill Road near Postage Road, then fled the scene.
11:44 p.m. After a traffic stop, police arrested a 23-year-old Reynoldsburg man on a warrant for multiple offenses out of Cuyahoga County.
July 26
12:19 p.m. An 18-year-old man allegedly sent threatening texts to an 18-year-old Pickerington woman.
Pickerington Police July 13 – 19, 2026