Suspects accused of impersonating officers, robbing Kettering home arrested near Columbus
Two men were arrested after they allegedly dressed as police officers after they robbed two people at gunpoint at a Kettering home early Tuesday morning.
Kettering police were first called to the Shell gas station at the intersection of East Dorothy Lane and County Line Road around 1 a.m. after receiving a non-emergency phone call from a newspaper delivery driver.
The driver reported a woman was at the gas station saying two men who said they were police officers had just robbed her and another person.
“Someone just came to my house. They had badges on, and said they were the police, but they told me not to call the police. They literally had me at gunpoint. They took my phone. They told me not to scream or do anything,” the victim said in the phone call, obtained in a News Center 7 public records request.
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The woman later reported to police that the two robbers approached her, yelling the name of the other victim, saying he was on probation and was under arrest, police documented in the incident report also obtained by News Center 7.
Kettering officers later found the robbery happened at a house south of the gas station on Gracemore Avenue. Further investigation found the woman and the second victim had just returned home when the robbers showed a gun and forced both inside the house.
“Eventually both victims were forced into the residence where their cell phones were taken and thrown. It’s not clear as to anything else that might have been taken,” Kettering Police Public Information Officer Tyler Johnson told News Center 7′s Kayla McDermott.
Both of the victims’ cell phones were later found in the yard of their house, Johnson said.
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Kettering police used their Flock license plate reader system to get the plate of the suspect vehicle, which was registered to an address in Whitehall, Ohio, east of Columbus. Kettering officers sent notifications to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Columbus, and Whitehall police to be on the lookout for the vehicle.
Kettering officers and Whitewall’s SWAT team searched multiple locations, according to our news partners at WBNS.
The two suspects were arrested but no charges have been filed yet, WBNS reported.
Kettering police are still investigating possible motives behind the incident however initial indications in the case show is was a targeted crime, Johnson said. Investigators also believe there is no ongoing threat to the general public.
“I feel the investigation is leaning towards, it could be a targeted person where they were possibly followed to the residence for some reason that we’re not exactly sure of just yet,” Johnson said.
“Its just something where it just seems so bizarre. It’s just part of the investigation definitely being looked into.”
Johnson also described the incident as “rare” to have robbers impersonating as police. However, if someone feels a person they’re talking to isn’t a police officer there are ways to check while interacting with the suspected officer.
“It’s pretty rare for us to hear something like (suspects impersonating police officers.) And I don’t think its a common thing even around the country,” Johnson said.
“So if you see somebody that’s dressed in something other than (a Kettering police uniform) make sure you get a proper identification. If you feel like there’s something fishy going on, feel free to call 911 to confirm that person is an officer.”
This is a developing story and we’ll continue to update this page as we learn more.
