By Mary Drier
Staff Writer
OWENDALE — Thanks to the curiosity and honesty of an Owendale resident an arrest was made on a breaking and entering of an Owendale business that happened 20 months ago.
On Sunday, Huron County Sgt. Ryan Neumann responded to a Sixth Street residence in the village of Owendale to investigate the report of a large amount of property being found.
“Apparently the owner of the residence found 797 packs of assorted cigarettes concealed inside of an old large television set. The homeowner also found 22 bottles of assorted liquor in different quantities, concealed in a hidden compartment,” said Huron County Sheriff Department Kelly Hanson noting the residence has had several different occupants living in it over the last couple of years.
On Monday, Detective Daryl Ford and Deputy Ryan Swartz started to investigate where the stolen items could have been taken from, and it was eventually determined that the property had been stolen from Stacks Market in Owendale in Aug. 23, 2013.
“A former occupant of that residence, a 57-year old male who now living in the Bad Axe area and on parole for unlawfully driving away an automobile and kidnapping, was taken into custody by our office on a parole detainer,” explained Hanson.
On Wednesday, the suspect, Thomas R. Jaffray, was officially charged with two felonies by the Huron County Prosecutor’s Office. He was arraigned in Huron District Court on breaking and entering with intent, and with receiving and concealing stolen property over $1,000 in connection with the robbery of Stacks Market.
“Back then (2013), he was originally questioned by our office about that incident and fled the state soon after. He was then located by the Michigan Department of Corrections and brought back to our state,” said Hanson. “He served time for violating his parole and was then released on parole.”
Jaffray’s bond was set at $50,000 cash, and he is being held on a parole detainer.
Mary Drier is a staff writer for the Tuscola County Advertiser. She can be reached at drier@tcadvertiser.com.