Firefighter’s car stolen, set on fire; 4 arrested

The dispute began after a firefighter intervened when he saw one of the four men steal a stuffed Scooby Doo doll at a county fair

July 31, 2015 09:19 AM

Times Union

SARATOGA COUNTY, N.Y. — A dispute over a stuffed Scooby Doo doll worth $45 at the Saratoga County Fair led four men to steal and burn a man’s new Subaru Impreza, according to police.

Four men — Devin M. Chapman, 21, Jared M. Jeremias, 22, Jon W. Goldsmith, 21, all of Moreau, and John R. Flewelling, 21, of Fort Edward — face charges in a case that may have been motivated by revenge, according to police.

The matter began Friday, when Chapman allegedly walked off with a Scooby Doo stuffed animal from a concession stand at the fair without paying for or winning it. A man who saw what happened near the basketball shooting booth intervened, and assisted in returning the prize back to M & J Concessions, according to Anthony Pirrone, a Ballston Spa police officer. The man, described as a firefighter, helped police identify Chapman, who was then charged with petit larceny, Pirrone said.

Somehow, during the confrontation at the fair, the man who rescued the Scooby doll dropped the keys to his 2015 Subaru, police said. After getting processed, Chapman returned to the fair grounds in Ballston Spa with Jeremias, Goldsmith and Flewelling, and they apparently located the Subaru by using its fob key that one of them had found, according to police.

“All four acted together in stealing the vehicle from a parking lot,” Pirrone said. Meanwhile, the owner of the Subaru reported his vehicle missing to police. At around 1:30 a.m., sheriff’s investigators and firefighters were called to an area with some power lines on Doe Run in Moreau, where they found the Impreza engulfed in flames, police said. An investigation revealed the four men intentionally burned the Subaru, the sheriff’s office said. Police believe the four burned the man’s car out of revenge for confronting Chapman about allegedly stealing the stuffed Scoob.

The four men were each charged with third-degree arson, a felony, according to the county sheriff’s office. On Tuesday, all four men were also charged with third-degree grand larceny of motor vehicle, a felony, Pirrone said. He said Jeremias was additionally charged with criminal possession of stolen property, a misdemeanor, for possessing the victim’s identification.