BINGHAMTON, NY (WIVT/WBGH) – Late last night, the Broome County Sheriff’s Office responded to 581 Old State Road for a report of a stolen 2020 light utility trailer with a 2020 Polaris side-by-side UTV mounted on it.
A neighbor heard commotion outside and observed a dark-colored, older modeled pick-up truck towing the trailer heading westbound on Old State Road.
The neighbor said that there were sparks coming from the ground as the trailer jack was dragging along the roadway. They also recognized the trailer and UTV and knew that they belonged to someone who lives out of town.
Deputies were able to follow the gouge marks from the trailer jack in the roadway for several miles to an address on Monroe Street in the City of Binghamton. There they located the stolen trailer with a badly damaged trailer jack. The UTV had been removed from the trailer.
Following an investigation, it was determined that the UTV had been taken to another address on the Southside of Binghamton. It was later located and recovered on Cross Street.
While interviewing individuals on Monroe Street, the older pick-up truck described by the initial neighbor drove down the street with four occupants inside.
Deputies stopped the vehicle and identified the occupants as Michael Benedict, 45 of Binghamton, Stephen Parsons, 42 of Greene, Melissa Johnson, 56 of Smithville Flats, and Patrick Hill, 36 of Smithville Flats.
All four subjects were arrested and each charged with two counts of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree. They were transported to the Broome County Jail to be arraigned on the charges.
The owner of the trailer and UTV lives in Skaneateles, New York and was notified of the theft and damage.