Concerned neighbor help cops catch vandalism duo

By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette

Thursday, Feb. 28, 2008, 2:15 a.m. -- Quick action by an eyewitness was crucial in the capture of two would-be thieves who were observed allegedly vandalized a vending machine and pay phone at a Balltown store early Thursday morning.

About 1:43 a.m. Thursday, Nelson County Dispatch received a call from a person living near the M & M Get-N-Go convenience store, 5077 New Haven Road in Balltown, reporting that a man and a woman were at the store attempting to vandalize a soda machine and the phone booth.

The caller gave a description of the clothes they were wearing, telling the dispatcher they had just left the store in an older model Buick.

A Nelson County Deputy Sheriff was dispatched to intercept the car. The pair were stopped at the Five Star Food Mart on New Haven Road by a Bardstown police officer who held the couple there while the deputy drove to the store to check for damage.

The city police officer found a screwdriver with a broken tip in the possession of the male subject. The deputy found that the phone booth at the store had been knocked over and was on the ground.

The witness who called police provided a positive identification of the couple as the people who were observed vandalizing the vending machine and pay phone. The woman offered police a statement.

The were charged by police for the vandalism. The woman was also cited by police for endangering the welfare of a minor.