Photos; (from left) Christopher Hogue and Jason Vanatter
The West Plains Police Department has announced the arrest of two people accused of stealing the catalytic converter off a church bus.
Thirty-four-year-old Christopher F. Hogue and 52-year-old Jason V. Vanatter are each charged with felony stealing and being held on a $5,000 bond. A third suspect remains at large.
On September 22, West Plains officers were dispatched to 202 Walnut Street for a report of a theft. The officers contacted a representative of the First Baptist Church and learned that a catalytic converter had been stolen from one of the church’s vans.
Video from the church was obtained, and a suspect was identified. Detectives went to the suspect’s residence, where police arrested Hogue and Vanatter.
Between September 17 and September 20, the West Plains Police Department received reports of catalytic converter thefts from the First Church of God, First Baptist Church, Grellner Sales and Service and Verity Heating and Air. Also, an unsuccessful attempt was made to steal the catalytic converter off of a vehicle parked on Lincoln Street.
The news release on the arrests of Hogue and Vanatter does not state if the two are believed to have been involved with the thefts of other catalytic converters in the area.
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