On the Fourth of July, a Linton man walked away from a stolen pickup truck that was parked at a convenience store. He said he didn’t know anything about a stolen truck, but an LPD officer said he had seen the man driving the truck in Linton.

Jayce Edward Troup, 25, was taken into custody by Officer Adam King of the Linton Police Department on Thursday, July 4. Troup was booked into the Greene County Jail around 7 p.m.

Officer King was dispatched to a residence on 7th Street NE in Linton around 5:30 p.m. on the holiday to talk to a man who wanted to report a stolen vehicle.

The man said he works nights and had been sleeping during the day. When he woke up around 4:30 p.m., his vehicle, a white Ford F-250 diesel pickup truck, was missing. He said he’d already called his fiancé to make sure she did not take the truck and he said nobody else had permission to take the truck.

Officer King said while he was still talking to the man, LPD Officer Orry Phipps called him to ask for more information about the stolen vehicle. Officer Phipps told King he’d just seen a vehicle that matched the description pass him at a high rate of speed. The truck also disregarded a stop sign. In addition, Officer Phipps said he recognized the driver to be Jayce Troup.

Officer Phipps also said the truck had parked on the north side of the Country Porch gas station and convenience store on 13th Street NW and when the officer approached the station, he saw Troup walk around from the front of the building and start walking east on Marshall Avenue.

The officers confirmed the license plate of the truck parked at the store matched the plate on the stolen vehicle.

Officer King said by the time he arrived at the station, Officer Phipps had Troup stopped on Marshall Avenue.

Troup allegedly said he didn’t know anything about a stolen truck and that he was walking everywhere.

The officers reported Troup was carrying a metal smoking device and Ziploc bags containing a green leaf-like substance that tested positive for synthetic cannabinoid. Although he said he didn’t know anything about the truck, Troup allegedly admitted he did have synthetic cannabinoid in his bag and a metal smoking device with burnt residue inside.

When Troup appeared in court for his initial hearing on Tuesday, July 9, he was charged with:

Auto theft – theft of entire automobile, a Level 6 felony.
Possession of a Schedule I-IV controlled substance, a Class A misdemeanor.
Possession of paraphernalia, a Class C misdemeanor.

Troup’s bond was set by the court at $5,500 surety with ten percent cash allowed. At some point after his hearing, Troup posted bond and was released from jail.