A pickup truck involved in a brief chase in the city early Monday morning was one of three vehicles reported stolen over the span of a few hours, according to Shawano police.
The pickup was later involved in a crash, and another vehicle has since been recovered. The third vehicle was still unaccounted for as of Tuesday afternoon.
The chain of events started shortly after 1:30 a.m. when police spotted a vehicle driving without headlights in the area of Richmond and Lafayette streets.
There was an attempted traffic stop and a short pursuit that was ultimately terminated, police said.
However, the pickup was found about two hours later at Circle and First streets, where it had hit a house. A male driver had fled and a 57-year-old female passenger was still in the vehicle. No injuries were reported.
The Toyota pickup turned out to have been stolen from the 800 block of West Picnic Street.
Police subsequently received two more auto theft complaints, including a Pontiac in the 500 block of North Franklin Street, a short distance from where the pickup was crashed.
The Pontiac was later recovered on the Menominee Indian Reservation.
A third vehicle was reported stolen in the 500 block of North Franklin Street. Authorities were still looking for that one.
Capt. Jeff Heffernon said physical evidence collected from the recovered Pontiac had helped develop leads and possible suspects in the auto thefts, all of which, he said, are believed to be related.
Heffernon said multiple parties are believed to have been involved.
Heffernon also said the incidents serve as another reminder for people to lock up their vehicles and take their keys. He said that means not just taking them out of the ignition, but also glove compartments, cup holders or anyplace else in the vehicle.
“Car thieves will look through many cars before they find one with the keys inside. That’s the one they take,” Heffernon said. “The days of hot-wiring a car are long gone.”