FROM STAFF REPORTS

Two Michigan men face felony charges in connection with a residential break-in and the theft of a truck in Iredell County.

On Tuesday, August 15, deputies assigned to the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office Aggressive Criminal Enforcement Team were working on Whites Farm Road when they noticed a man going through the trunk of a vehicle that appeared to be broken down, Sheriff Darren Campbell said.

Deputy G. Wiedenmann turned around to assist the driver, but when he returned the man was no longer there, the sheriff said in a news release.

After further investigation, Deputy Wiedenmann discovered that the license plate on the abandoned vehicle had been stolen in Ohio and the vehicle had been reported stolen in Michigan, Campbell said.

Deputies searched the area but were unable to locate the man. The vehicle was towed from the scene.

The next morning ICSO deputies were dispatched to an address on Ingram Road, where a home had been broken into overnight and a vehicle had been stolen, according to the news release.

Deputies determined that someone had crawled through a window in the garage to gain access to two vehicles inside, Campbell said. Items were reported stolen out of a Ford Explorer, and a 2018 Toyota Tundra was stolen from the garage.

On August 17, the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office was notified that the stolen Toyota Tundra had been recovered in Camden County, Ga. After the vehicle’s occupants were suspected of stealing lottery tickets from a local gas station, St. Mary’s Police Department officers located the Tundra and attempted to pull the vehicle over, Campbell said.

Following a pursuit by St. Mary’s police officers and Camden County Sheriff’s Office deputies, the Tundra was stopped on Interstate 95 near the Florida/Georgia state line. The suspects fled on foot but were apprehended a short time later, according to the news release.

Michael Shane Conley, 30, and Travis Toivo Walls, 31, both of Monroe, Mich.,  were arrested by Camden County deputies on multiple misdemeanor and felony charges.

Prior to leaving Iredell County, the suspects switched out the license plate on the stolen truck with a license plate stolen from a similar vehicle on Loraindale Drive in Statesville, the sheriff said.

The suspects will be extradited to Iredell County to face the following charges: Felony Possession of Stolen Motor Vehicle, Felony Conspiracy to Commit Possession of a Stolen Motor Vehicle, Felony Breaking and Entering, Felony Larceny of Motor Vehicle, Felony Conspiracy to Commit Breaking and Entering, Felony Conspiracy to Commit Larceny of Motor Vehicle, Misdemeanor Larceny and Misdemeanor Conspiracy to Commit Larceny.

Both suspects have several felony convictions, according to the ICSO.