Leo B. Mitchell, 37, of Many, was arrested by Sabine Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies on September 23, 2018, for numerous charges stemming from his alleged attempt to steal an ATM kiosk from a local business.
Mitchell was booked into the Sabine Parish Detention Center for theft of a motor vehicle, two counts of simple criminal damage to property (over $1,000), simple burglary, attempted theft of an ATM, theft (over $1,000), and no tail lights.
The Sabine Parish Sheriff’s Office (SPSO) was notified by an alarm that there had been a break-in at Curtis’ Grocery around 3:53 a.m. Deputies arrived shortly after being notified and found that a vehicle had crashed through the front doors of the business. After a review of surveillance footage, a description of the vehicle was obtained. The surveillance footage also indicated that the subject that had driven into the store, tried to remove the ATM kiosk before fleeing. Deputies were able to locate the vehicle near Florien and attempted to make a traffic stop. The driver, later identified as Mitchell, refused to stop and a short vehicle chase took place before he abandoned the vehicle and fled on foot. SPSO deputies were able to secure the perimeter of the area until a tracking dog and handler from Vernon Parish Sheriff’s Office arrived. Mitchell was arrested by deputies in a thicket after the VPSO bloodhound quickly led them to him. Mitchell admitted to deputies that he had stolen the vehicle and crashed into the store in order to steal the ATM kiosk.
The incident is still under investigation and additional charges are pending.