UPDATE-ARRESTS MADE: Stolen ’37 Packard Recovered
The 1937 Packard, along with the trailer in which it was stored and the pickup truck that was used to haul it around, were recovered late Tuesday after police received a tip from an employee of the Fireside Inn. in Auburn, Maine.
AUBURN, Maine— A 1937 Packard 120 convertible in showroom condition and valued at $120,000 has been found in the parking lot of an Auburn hotel a week after it was reported stolen from a home in Naples.
The 1937 Packard, along with the trailer in which it was stored and the pickup truck that was used to haul it around, were recovered late Tuesday after police received a tip from an employee of the Fireside Inn.
The stolen Packard as it was found inside the trailer. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal
The employee may be eligible for a $10,000 reward offered by the car's owner, John Betz, who spends the winter in Florida.
According to police reports, the vehicles were driven away from 54 Bayou Road in Naples overnight between March 4 and 5. A 1994 GMC 3500 four-door pickup and 1994 Pace American trailer were taken from the yard, but the real gem was inside the trailer.
Detective Keith Cook from the Cumberland County Sheriff's Department opens the car trailer that was parked at the Fireside Inn in Auburn on Tuesday. A stolen antique Packard was inside the trailer. Daryn Slover/Sun Journal
When detectives opened the trailer, the cream yellow Packard with tan top, gray interior and rumble seat was inside, secured with straps anchoring it to the floor.
Police say the truck and trailer had been parked in the hotel parking lot for most of the past week. Investigators are seeking a man who was seen in the area and reportedly told strangers that he was trying to sell the Packard.
The owner of the Packard told television news reporters from his Florida home he has no idea who might have taken them.
Update: 3/18/2008
NAPLES - The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office charged one Bridgton man Monday and is looking for two more in connection with the theft of an an antique Packard worth an estimated $120,000.
Detective Lt. Donald Foss said Monday night that Matthew D. Jarvinen, 23, of 5 Noble Lane was arrested at his home at 5:30 p.m. by Cumberland County and Bridgton police. He was charged with theft by unauthorized taking and taken to the Cumberland County Jail in Portland.
Police were still looking for two more Bridgton men believed involved in this month's incident: Paul J. Grenier, 23, of 1224 North High St. and Joel R. Jordan, 23, of 37 Main St., both named in warrants charging them with theft by unauthorized taking in the March 4 and 5 theft, Foss said.
