One Suspect Caught Hiding Under House, Second Still At Large

 
 
By Shannon McFarlin WENK/WTPR News Director
 
Camden, Tenn.—One man is in custody and Benton County authorities are still looking for a second man in connection to the theft of a safe from Maury Co. over the weekend.
 
After a three to four hour search by ground and air, the Benton Co. Sheriff’s Office apprehended Dakota Michael Woelk, age 20, who was hiding under a house in the Holladay area.
 
Benton Co. Sheriff Ken Christopher told WENK/WTPR this afternoon his department is still looking for Jeremy Malone in connection with the case. Both Woelk and Malone were staying at a home on Magnolia Drive in Holladay, Christopher said.
 
Christopher said the incident began when Maury Co. issued a BOLO to area law enforcement on Saturday, asking them to be on the lookout for a van that had been involved in the burglary of a business. A safe was stolen which contained several thousand dollars, documents and jewels.
 
Meanwhile, the owner of the business remembered that Woelk and Malone had worked for him and went to their address and found the safe on fire in the yard and two guys running away, Christopher said.
 
The owner notified the sheriff’s office which called for more deputies and the Tennessee Highway Patrol. K9 officers were used, as well as the THP helicopter.
 
“We combed the area,” Christopher said. “It was about a 3-4 hour search and we finally found him about a mile from the house on Magnolia. He was hiding under a house.”
 
None of the money has been recovered, but it seems most of the paperwork and jewels have been recovered, he said.
 
Christopher said he isn’t sure why the safe was on fire. “They were using a grinder to open it and we’re not sure if they accidentally started it on fire or if they deliberately started it on fire,” he said.
 
The owner had identified the safe and the contents, he said. “He remembered that these guys worked for him and would have known something about the safe because he needed new locks for it and had to move it and they helped him with that.”
 
Anyone who knows Malone’s whereabouts is asked to call the sheriff’s office.
Photo: Sheriff Ken Christopher, at left, with deputies and a THP trooper look inside burned out safe. (Benton Co. SO photo).