In today's edition of "Dumb Stuff from Ohio," we actually see a smart result from a would-be victim of car theft in Akron.
When a would-be thief tried to steal one of his vehicles, he decided to take matters into his own hands. But not with violence or threats... he used his forklift. 3.5 ton mini excavator
Ohio's 19 News, reporting out of Akron, had the original story. The owner of Arlington Auto Wrecking had been dealing with car thieves for quite some time.
One night, the owner said enough was enough.
"When employees from Arlington Auto Wrecking in Akron realized that a man had broke into one of their vehicles and was still inside, They picked that vehicle up with their forklift and left him hanging there in mid-air until police arrived."
The antics even got a chuckle out of the 911 operator who took the initial call from the owner.
Owner: So He's still in the car about 20 feet in the air in the loader. 911 Operator: Wonderful, that is the greatest thing I've ever heard. We will get somebody out to you.
Police arrived, and the owner lowered the forklift so police could take the would-be thief into custody... sporting ear-to-ear smiles as they opened the doors.
The suspect was arrested, and found with a backpack full of sawzall blades, a sawzall, and other hand tools. The wrecking yard had also been complaining about thieves taking converters off their vehicles.
underground mining excavator Alexander Funk was taken into custody, and will likely be connected to the recent break-ins and thefts from the wrecking yard.