A 24-year-old West Virginia man is in custody outside Pittsburgh after authorities say he broke into a Tuscarawas County home, stole a gun, hijacked a van from an Ohio funeral home, and then held up a Scio gas station employee at gunpoint before fleeing across state lines. The armed robbery at the Circle K happened shortly before 5:30 a.m. on Sunday, according to Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s Detective Capt. Adam Fisher, and within hours investigators had run the suspect to ground roughly 50 to 60 miles away in Pennsylvania.
According to Jordan Miller News, the man allegedly broke into a Tuscarawas County home and stole a firearm and other property before traveling into neighboring Harrison County. From there, investigators say he entered R.K. Lindsey Funeral Home in Dennison and allegedly took clothing that made him appear associated with the business, along with the funeral home’s van itself. Deputies learned the vehicle was missing early Sunday morning, according to the Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s Office account relayed in the same report.
The disguise allegedly built from the stolen apparel was distinctive enough to become a key identifying detail for law enforcement. Per the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office, the suspect wore a red hat, dark cutoff pants, a dark hoodie bearing the R.K. Lindsey Funeral Home name, and a black face mask also printed with the funeral home’s name during the Circle K robbery. Deputies used that description, along with details of the stolen van, to issue a regional be-on-the-lookout alert.
A Getaway Vehicle With No Business Markings
The van at the center of the alert was described as a silver or gray 2018 Ford Transit bearing Ohio license plate PDT 2205, notably lacking any external business logos despite belonging to the funeral home, per the Harrison County Sheriff’s Office. That stolen van was used during the armed robbery at the Scio gas station, and it became the thread investigators pulled to track the suspect across state lines…