Rt. 30 Car Lot Video Grabs Clear Shot Of Thief's Face

UNITY TOWNSHIP, Pa. - THE PITTSBURGH CHANNEL.com

Thieves have been ripping off tires, rims and scrap metal from a car dealership on Route 30 in Westmoreland County, and the fed-up owner installed a security system to catch them in the act.

Surveillance video at Mike's Car Lot shows somebody helping himself to some scrap and an aluminum rim in the rear of the lot in Unity Township. When he turned around to leave, the camera caught a perfect shot of his face.

THURSDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE:

State police in Greensburg said they've received several phone calls about the man in the video and have identified him as Edward Miller, 55, of the Latrobe area. Police said he would be charged with theft.

"I set stuff out there, and there's not a 'free' sign out there. People just come and take them," owner Mike Bartow told Channel 4 Action News' Jennifer Miele. "They are there for a reason. They are spare tires for cars and that, and if somebody really needed them, I'd just give them the tires. They just feel free to come and take whatever is back there."

Bartow turned his video over to state police troopers. They don't think the same person is responsible for all of the recent thefts, but they are hopeful of being able to at least solve this one.

"In a case like this, without surveillance video, we wouldn't be able to make an arrest," Trooper Stephen Limani said. "Surveillance video is absolutely paramount when it comes to some crimes. It's absolutely paramount to have."

Police received dozens of phone calls from Channel 4 Action News viewers who pointed them toward the suspect after seeing the video on television.

"They were calling me, telling me they were fed up with theft in their community," Limani said. "I told them they could remain anonymous. Some said, 'I don't care, you can know who I am, I know who did it,' and they gave me information."

And Bartow hopes it will send a message.

"Don't take stuff from Mike's Car Lot, or you're going to get caught," he said.

Within 90 minutes of the video airing on TV, the missing rims were returned. Police believe the suspect rolled them down the hill behind the car lot, where he could stay out of the view of surveillance cameras.

• Your County:More Westmoreland County News Headlines
• E-Mail Headlines:We Send The Latest Pittsburgh News To You!
• RSS:Add Us To Your iGoogle Or My Yahoo Page
• Mobile:Get WTAE Headlines On Your Phone, BlackBerry, PDA

Most Popular Stories at THE PITTSBURGH CHANNEL

• Jury Spares Students' Killer After Hearing Compassionate Plea
• Baby's Body Found After Teen Gives Birth, Tells Classmates
• Fort Hood Gunman Kills 12, Injures 31
• Local Soldier Based At Fort Hood Says Shooting 'Hits Home' For Many
• Chiropractor, Wife Investigated In Probe Of Orphans' $1 Million Trust

MORE FROM THEPITTSBURGHCHANNEL.COM

ThePittsburghChannel.Com Section Front

Team 4: Pa. Lawyer Web Site Missing Information Baby Born On Parkway North Messy Crash Blocks Route 30 For Hours Hines Ward, Max Talbot On 'City Of Champions' Cereal Box Pittsburgh Woman Guilty Of Stealing More Than $400K From Employer ThePittsburghChannel.Com Section Front   Add ThePittsburghChannel.Com headlines to your news reader: