Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
At least 43 burglaries have been cleared thanks to the cooperative efforts of several sheriff and police departments. And that may be just the beginning.
Two suspects are in custody for their involvement in the burglaries and two others are being sought.
Timothy Ray Ruggles, 26, 5266 W. CR 950S, Silver Lake, was charged Tuesday with burglary of a business and booked into the Kosciusko County jail on a $50,000 bond. Through statements made, Russell Swinehart, 27, North Manchester, was taken into custody by the Wabash City Police.
The case began unraveling for officials on Nov. 25, when North Manchester Police responded to a domestic complaint. Upon arrival at the residence, a woman told the police the male suspect had fled. She gave officers a laptop computer that was taken during a burglary of the South Shore Golf Course, Syracuse.
Detective Tom Brindle, of the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department, was then contacted with the information.
Tuesday, detectives from the Kosciusko County, Marshall County and Wabash County sheriff's departments; Syracuse Police Department; Indiana State Police and the North Manchester Police Department met in North Manchester.
With information supplied by the woman, the officers went to Ruggles' residence, where several guns along with other stolen items were found.
Burglaries cleared include eight in Kosciusko County, one in Syracuse, two in Middleberry, two in Ligonier, four in Marshall County, nine in Wabash County, two in Warsaw and 15 in North Manchester.
In one Wabash burglary alone, 37 handguns were stolen from a gun shop, three of which were found at Ruggles' residence.
"We're still working on (the case) but we can connect all of those and there still may be more," Brindle said Wednesday.
