Middletown Division of Police

Dec. 31

A Middletown couple was allegedly caught stealing a bag and using the credit card to purchase gas twice in the same day in the city. A woman who was visiting a friend at Atrium Medical Center, 1 Medical Center Drive, told police when she returned to the waiting area, someone had stolen her bag that contained a Bible, cell phone and a Chase Visa debit card. The hospital’s surveillance camera showed the couple picking up the bag and leaving the hospital. The couple purchased $75 worth of gas at Speedway, 3501 Roosevelt Blvd., and 20 minutes later, bought $70 worth of gas at Verity Fuel Mart, 2501 N. Verity Parkway. An arrest warrant was issued for the couple.

A Trenton woman, Amanda Smith, 22, was charged with possession of drug instrument/syringe and obstructing official business following a traffic stop at the intersection of Hanover Avenue and South Verity Parkway. At first, Smith gave police a different name, but they noticed her initials — AMS — were tattooed on her neck. The car Smith was riding in was stopped because its head light was out and there was no light on the back license plate.

Four aluminum tires, valued at $500 each, were stolen out of the back of a Toyota pickup truck that was parked in the 700 block of Charles Street. The man said he used the tires to add weight to his truck after the snow.

Middletown police called Butler County Children Services after they discovered a 21-month-old boy was living in “horrible, filthy conditions” at an apartment in the 4000 block of Roosevelt Boulevard. When police arrived, the front door was wide open, and they could see the boy lying on the bed. They said there were flies and gnats in the apartment, and clothes were scattered on the floor and there wasn’t enough food in the residence. BCCS was called and they performed an “emergency removal of the children.” The boy was turned over to his great aunt.

More than $500 worth of yard tools were stolen from a shed in the 100 block of Garfield Street. Thieves stole a new Toro lawn mower, a drill and a blower.

Police and firefighters responded to a report of a 1991 Cadillac Deville on fire in the 3200 block of Tytus Avenue. The fire was ruled an arson.

A Kenmore air conditioner was stolen from a residence in the 2100 block of Hill Avenue.

A Lebanon man, Eliezer Rivera, 30, was charged with felony theft after he was arrested driving a stolen 1994 Ford Ranger pickup truck. When he was taken to jail, police found one hypodermic needle, another partially hidden in his rectum, and a crack pipe. He also was charged with possession of drug abuse/instruments.