GRAND THEFT PICKUP

I'm sipping a hot, homemade cortado; working on a New York Times puzzle. "Where's your truck?" My Amazing-Missus asks. "Parked on the driveway where I left it."

"No, it's not!"

I dashed out the door, thinking she just happened to not see a huge Ford F150 SuperCrew sitting there minding its own business.

We bought the truck back in 2023. At the time the young salesman began to try to convince me to get this app called "FordPass". "The app will show you your vehicle's tire pressures, gas level and mileage. It will allow you to remotely lock and unlock the vehicle. And, it will show you the truck's location."

I told him I didn't want the app. I had no interest in being tracked. If I wanted to stop by an Andy's Custard for a large hot fudge sundae, it's nobody's business. He explained that if I signed up I would get $250 in "Ford Bucks" that I could use for oil changes and stuff. So, I signed up.

-- "Shawnee Police, how can I help?"

-- "My truck has been stolen out of my driveway."

-- "Address? Make? Model? Color? Do you happen to have an app that will show you the vehicle's location?"

YES!. Yes I do!

She told me they have officers enroute and another arriving at our house. We stayed on the line and I kept her updated on the truck's location. It had come to a stop at the city park in Tecumseh. The officer came to the house and we monitored the chase on his radio. Now the Tecumseh police and the county sheriff had joined the chase.

It sounded like they had them surrounded at the park but they took off again. Then--over a bit of radio static-- "They've crashed out in a ditch." A long pause. "They've managed to get out." "The vehicle is stopped and they're fleeing on foot. We need a canine unit."

We called both of our sons. Corey, who lives in Shawnee, decided to join the pursuit and arrived at the final resting place of the vehicle as the perps (police talk) were being taken into custody. It was such a relief to see a familiar face there. Our youngest son, Kyle, who worked for several years in law enforcement was on the phone with me, calming me down by walking me patiently through the possible scenarios. Such a gift.

Corey called to say he was talking with police, and while the truck was clearly damaged it seemed to be drivable. So we headed south to the crime scene. As we got closer it looked like every available law enforcement unit in the county was there. They had apprehended all three, two sixteen year-old boys and an eighteen year-old girl, at various locations near Tecumseh lake.

Police had searched the truck. "Mr. Fuller did you have handguns in the vehicle," they asked. "Only if they have an orange tip at the end and shoot water," I offered in full disclosure. They recovered two real guns, a backpack, a filthy coat and one glove from the truck.

One of the fugitives, just a kid, the same age as my oldest GrandGirl, was sitting on the ground, hands cuffed behind his back, his head between his knees. I wanted to go over and tell him I was sorry for whatever had happened in his young life that had brought him to this point.

My initial reactions to it all were an adrenaline-filled frustration--thinking about the hassle of dealing with the fallout of some stupid kids stealing a vehicle and going for a joy ride. But when I learned that they had guns in my truck I was sickened--for the kids and by them, also by the horrible scenarios of what might have been. Now I pray there might be a turning point soon for these three, maybe a hope of what might could be.

P.S.: The truck is only marginally drivable. It shimmies and shakes and now sits and waits for the police and insurance company to tell us what's next.