Ad leads to arrest 20 years after car theft
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NEW YORK (AP) -- Auto thieves be warned: New York police won't give up the chase -- even if it takes 20 years.
On Monday, police said they arrested Scott Kenny, 46, in connection with the May 1983 theft of an automobile.
Twenty years ago, the 1968 Mercury Cougar was reported stolen from a home. Fast forward two decades to November 19, 2003, when a Newsday ad appeared advertising the car.
A retired New York City police sergeant saw the ad and went to check the auto out, taking pictures to send to a retired detective who's a Mercury Cougar enthusiast.
The retired detective saw the car's vehicle identification number in one of the photos and matched it to the registration of a car he once lost to auto thieves 20 years ago: a 1968 Mercury Cougar.
City police do not close auto theft cases until the cars are recovered, so Kenny, who said he got the car from a family member, was arrested when police were notified.
"The statute of limitations is up on grand larceny," said Officer Jennara Everleth, a police spokeswoman. She said all Kenny can be charged with is criminal possession of stolen property.
Everleth said the car is sitting at a pound, waiting for its original owner, and is still in good condition, though it might need a paint job.
Copyright 2003 The
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