A Venus man is facing charges for breaking into a garage Monday morning in Pinegrove Township.
Franklin state police said in a criminal complaint they responded to a call at about 8:45 a.m. Monday from a Pinegrove Township resident who said Craig Hartle, 34, had come to his property driving a vehicle with two tires strapped to the roof.
Hartle tried to sell the man logging equipment, then the man told Hartle to leave and he did, the complaint said. The man said Hartle made him nervous because he had two large knives hanging from a belt around his waist, according to the complaint.
After unsuccessfully looking in the area for Hartle, state police responded to another property on Township Line Road at about 9:30 a.m. for reports of a burglary, the complaint said.
During this time another call came to the Franklin barracks that a man driving a vehicle with two tires on the roof tried to sell another Pinegrove Township resident a firearm and “was acting strange” that morning, according to the complaint.
The property owner on Township Line Road told police he had checked on his property that morning and found fresh tire tracks and footprints that led to his garage that someone had forced entry into, the complaint said.
The property owner also said two tires he had laying outside were missing, according to the complaint.
Police observed that the tire tracks matched the ones made by Hartle’s vehicle at the other residence as well as the imprint where two vehicle tires had been laying in the snow, the complaint said.
While police and the property owner were looking over the property and garage that had been broken into, the property owner received a call saying Hartle’s vehicle had just pulled into a residence on Old Route 157, the complaint said.
Police found Hartle when they arrived at the Old Route 157 residence, and the property owner was called to identify his missing tires and other items, which he did, the complaint said. Police then took Hartle into custody, according to the complaint.
Hartle has been charged with felony counts of burglary- not adapted to overnight accommodation, no person present and criminal trespass- enter structure.
He was arraigned Tuesday and placed in the Venango County jail after failing to post bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled Dec. 30 in Central Court.
