Weekend crime wave includes theft, vandalism

Break In

The second costly tool theft in a month's span took place in Sidney last weekend.

Sometime over the weekend, thousands of dollars worth of tools were stolen from the Lodgepole Creek Apartment complex work site on Fort Sidney Road. This equipment was stored in large trailers at the construction site.

"When employees arrived at work Monday, they had nothing to work with," said Sidney Police Chief B.J. Wilkinson.

The police are currently running down a few leads related to the investigation, he added.

Equipment stolen from the site included less expensive items, such as hand tools, to more pricey equipment, such as nail guns and air compressors. The trailers were nearly cleaned out. The crew was forced to purchase new tools in order to continue work.

Wilkinson confirmed that there may be some sort of connection between this and other recent crime involving tool theft.

"Apparently there is some market here where this is liquidated for cash or other commodities," Wilkinson said.

Tools are easily traded and difficult to identify, which makes them a prime target for thefts, he added. In December, thousands of dollars worth of tools were stolen from the Sidney street department building.

Graffiti

Sidney's underpass to the north side was subject to two bouts of vandalism over the weekend.

The east wall of the underpass, accessible from the pedestrian walkway, was virtually covered with graffiti. Messages mentioning police were written five nights ago, according to Wilkinson. Then, three nights ago, some additions were made to the writing already on the wall. These additions included more philosophical statements in place of the derogatory remarks about law enforcement officers that seemed to be the focus of the first instance of vandalism.

Police are still looking for information about this crime, Wilkinson said. Police asked for the help of Sidney schools students with any information they could supply regarding the crime.

Stewie's

Also last weekend, Stewie's was vandalized. A person or persons unknown painted graffiti on the back door of the bar that is a Sidney institution. In addition to this, a lug nut was thrown through the front window.

Police are currently investigating this crime.

Impersonating an Officer

The Cheyenne County Sheriff's office is working to find a man who reportedly impersonated a law enforcement official last weekend.

Late Sunday evening a young female was stopped on Highway 30 between Sidney and Lodgepole by a white male in a dark four door sedan that appeared to have red and blue lights on the dashboard but no markings on the outside, according to Cheyenne County Sheriff John Jenson. The man was described as between 35-45 years old and between 5'11 and 6' tall, with short brown hair and blue or green eyes.

He was wearing blue jeans and a hooded North Face sweatshirt at the time of the incident.

Sidney Police and the Cheyenne County Sheriff's Office are working together to locate this individual. Police advise anyone who is pulled over by a questionable vehicle to call 911 and ask dispatch if there is an officer in the area.

Chief B.J. Wilkinson advises residents who aren't sure if they're being pulled over by an official officer to slow down and head directly to the Police Department or the Sheriff's Office and to honk the horn until a law enforcement official comes outside or responds to the emergency call.

Jenson asks anyone with any information to call the sheriff's office at 254-2922, the Sidney police at 254-5515 or crime stoppers at 254-3344.

"We wanna get to the bottom of this quickly," Wilkinson said.