Maryland man, 18, charged as third suspect in April burglary of Gettysburg car dealership
Police have identified and charged a third suspect believed to have been involved in an April theft from a car dealership, according to court records.
Jose Garcia-Lopez, 18, of Severna Park, Md., now faces felony charges of theft, burglary and criminal mischief related to the April 26, 2024 theft of two vehicles from the showroom of Renn Kirby Chevrolet in Straban Township, according to court documents filed on Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024.
The smashed out glass vehicle doors leading to the showroom of Renn Kirby Chevrolet after a robbery in April.
Garcia-Lopez is the third defendant charged in relation to the burglary, following after Jefferson Ventura, 18, and London Flores, 19, both of Silver Spring, Maryland, who faced similar charges filed on July 23, 2024.
Previously reported: Two men charged in connection to theft from Adams County car dealership
According to affidavits of probable cause, Flores, Ventura and Lopez were allegedly involved in the thefts of a silver 2024 Chevrolet Corvette, worth $88,640, and a yellow 2018 ZL1 convertible Chevrolet Camaro, worth $58,500.
The affidavit states that around 12:06 a.m. on April 26, 2024, three suspects in a dark blue Dodge Challenger Hellcat drove onto the lot of Renn Kirby Chevrolet on Expedition Trail in Straban Township, just outside of Gettysburg.
At the time of the July charges, Garcia-Lopez was not yet identified, and was named as an “unidentified third co-defendant.” The affidavit against Lopez now identifies him as allegedly being the back-seat passenger of the Dodge Challenger when the trio arrived.
In a screenshot of surveillance footage, two suspects are seen as they steal two vehicles from the Renn Kirby Chevrolet in Straban Township.
Garcia-Lopez was identified through cellphone warrants, according to the affidavit against him.
Garcia-Lopez’s phone was first identified in the area of a Howard County robbery, the affidavit states, and then later was identified through a “tower dump warrant” as being present during the Gettysburg robbery.
On Aug. 8, 2024, Pennsylvania State Police received data extracted from the cellphone of Ventura, the affidavit against Lopez states, which found messages between Ventura, Garcia-Lopez and Flores.
Ventura and Flores were extradited from Maryland after the pair had been detained in Montgomery County, and remain confined inside Adams County Prison.
Garcia-Lopez was indicted in Maryland on charges related to a Howard County car theft, and was released on recognizance on Nov. 4, 2024.
Garcia-Lopez has not yet been arraigned in relation to the Pennsylvania charges, according to court records.
This article originally appeared on Hanover Evening Sun: Police charge third suspect in April burglary of Gettysburg dealership
Source link
