A 48-year-old man was arrested on allegations that he stole thousands of dollars of brake shoes from a Stewartville business last weekend.
Olmsted County Sheriff's deputies were called about 8:30 a.m. Monday to Allstate Peterbilt of Rochester, 610 Schumann Drive NW in Stewartville, for a report of a theft of approximately two pallets and an unspecified number of bins filled with used brake shoes. The business was hit a second time on Tuesday and 160 more pairs of brake shoes were taken, according to Lt. Lee Rossman.
Comparing surveillance footage from the Sunday and Tuesday incidents, it appeared that the same individual committed the two thefts. An investigator was able to identify a suspect and then locate the trailer which was believed to have been used in the incident. The investigator also found the business where the suspect is alleged to have cashed in the stolen parts.
Chad Ralph Mussell, of Rochester, was arrested by Rochester police Thursday night for the thefts as well as on a warrant out of Goodhue County, Rossman said. He made his first appearance in Olmsted County District Court on Friday morning on a single charge of felony theft.
The estimated value of the brake shoes stolen on Sunday was about $9,000 because the truck shop would have been able to send the items back to the manufacturers who could reuse them. Rossman said the brake shoes were sold to an Oronoco Township recycling center for less than $600.
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The burglary of a partner business in Clear Lake, Iowa, that was also hit by thieves on Sunday is not believed to be related.
