Brazen car burglar picks wrong vehicle

Athief breaking into cars was not deterred when he came across a marked State Highway Patrol cruiser in Franklin County.

The thief was going through a neighborhood — one not identified in a Franklin County search warrant — when he chose to break into the patrol car on Sept. 13 or 14.

Among the items taken were a shotgun engraved with the patrol’s flyingwheel patch, a handgun, a stun gun, a vest and a police radio, according to a warrant for the suspect’s cellphone. He apparently broke the radio because he thought it might contain a GPS tracker.

Troopers were able to identify the suspect because a neighbor’s home-surveillance camera captured images.

A relative of the suspect also called to tip off troopers. She told them that “she turns him in every time she knows he does something illegal.”

In another search of the suspect’s property, investigators found a bandolier with shotgun rounds and a tactical bag that holds ammunition in patrol cars.

‘Everybody should step up’

Lawrence Curfman was driving on Fremont Street on the Hilltop on May 9 when he saw a Columbus police officer struggling with a female suspect.

Curfman stopped his pickup truck and ran to help Officer Susanna Nance subdue the suspect.

Nance said she is grateful that Curfman stopped to help because the ending could have been much different if he had driven on.

The Columbus Police Division recently recognized Curfman’s actions with a Citizen Commendation Award during the division’s recent awards ceremony, writes Dispatch Reporter Jim Woods.

“It’s only by the grace of God I was there because I usually don’t travel those streets,” Curfman said.

The 50-year-old Hilliard man said a friend has bought a house there and wanted help in evaluating the property.

Curfman once served in the Marines.

“When the adrenaline started pumping, it was over,” he quipped.

He also thinks he did nothing unusual.

“Everybody should step up,” he said. “There are not enough police officers.”