4 cars stolen, 3 damaged at Midtown auto repair shop

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Police say thieves armed with guns broke into an auto repair shop in Midtown twice early Tuesday morning and left with four vehicles, driving one of them right through a garage door.

The car thieves also caused a lot of damage at Central Auto Repair, near Central and Cooper.

Investigators said two males wearing hoodies and masks broke out a window to get inside the business, jumped into a 2011 white Dodge Ram, and drove it through the garage door, damaging two vehicles parked on the other side.

Police say the suspects returned with another man around 3 a.m.

Employees of Central Auto Repair said the two suspects and a third man returned to the shop and stole a dark gray 2015 Mercedes C300, a 1985 red Mercedes 380SL, and a 2011 dark green Jeep Grand Cherokee. They also took a vehicle programmer valued at around $10,000.

Police said they recovered the red Mercedes about an hour later at the April Woods Apartments on Chelsea Avenue in North Memphis.

Officers said they were responding to a prowler call at 4:25 a.m. when they saw eight males take off in a gray Mercedes C300, a black Dodge Charger, and a Black Infiniti. The red Mercedes was parked nearby.

The break-in at Central Auto was caught on camera.

If you have seen the missing vehicles or have any information that can help investigators, call CrimeStoppers at (901)528-CASH.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com.