Baldwin Co. men arrested after stealing APD vehicle, other items
By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
A pair of Baldwin County men remained behind bars early this week after their arrest last week for stealing an Atmore Police Department Humvee and several other items of APD property from an undisclosed storage site.
The theft came to light on Tuesday, January 14, when a ranking police officer became aware of civilians on the property and sent officers to the storage facility to see what was going on.
They discovered that a gate to the site had been damaged, then made to appear undamaged, by the interlopers, who took the vehicle — which is used mainly to assist individuals or families imperiled by hurricanes or other weather events — and the other items, which have not been listed by police.
An investigation was immediately launched, and the suspects were apprehended after they returned to the site during the early morning hours of January 16, apparently looking to steal other equipment or supplies.
Police were able to detain a vehicle, occupied by two men, at the location. One of the men was immediately arrested, while the other ran from the scene.
An Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) dog team was called in to track the wanted man, but the dogs lost his scent, and the search was called off.
The investigation led officers to a rural Baldwin County area from which the Humvee and other stolen items were recovered. Police also found the suspects to be in possession of an unspecified quantity of an undisclosed illicit substance.
Joseph Edwin Hayles and Dalton Garret Patterson, both age 29 and residents of Bay Minette, were charged with one count each first-degree theft of property, third-degree burglary, and possession of a controlled substance, along with five counts of breaking and entering a vehicle.
Patterson was also charged with two counts of probation violation, and both men also reportedly face charges in Baldwin County.
Along with the ADOC tracking dog team, local police were assisted by officers of the Monroe County and Baldwin County sheriff’s offices, as well as agents of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Hayles, who was booked into the Escambia County Detention Center around 9 p.m. January 16, remained in the facility Monday morning, January 20, while Patterson, who was processed into the Baldwin County Jail around 8:10 a.m. on January 16, was still listed on that facility’s inmate roster Monday morning.