Four suspects have been arrested in relation to a reported burglary July 22 at an auto salvage business in Newton.
At 1:53 a.m. Wednesday, the Jasper County Sheriff's Office responded to a call for a burglary in process at Car Country located off Highway 14 South. Jasper County deputies arrived on scene and began searching for multiple suspects involved in the incident with the assistance of Newton Police Department.
Law enforcement officials searched for three hours and three suspects were apprehended at the scene. A fourth suspect was apprehended on a public roadway close to Car Country. After further investigation, it was discovered the suspects were allegedly involved in cutting and removing catalytic converters from vehicles owned by Car Country.
The four suspects are Des Moines residents Wah L. Htoo, 29, Aung S. Thu, 23, Ashis Patel, 19, and Klo D. Htoo, 35.
Additionally, it was determined the suspects made multiple trips to the property over several days in order to steal the converters. At least 50 catalytic converters were stolen and the total amount of damage done to vehicles is still being determined.
Multiple vehicles operated by the suspects were removed from the scene and search warrants were executed on them. The search turned up multiple items used to assist in the theft of the converters. Methamphetamine, marijuana and drug paraphernalia were also located on multiple suspects and their property.
The case remains under investigation.
Contact Dustin Teays at 641-792-3121 ext. 6533 or dteays@newtondailynews.com
