Man charged with stealing a Jeep that belonged to a jail inmate

Last week a man was in court, charged with stealing a Jeep and selling it. The Jeep belonged to an inmate at Greene County Jail.

Charles William Hughes II

Charles William Hughes II, 34, Greenfield, was arrested on Tuesday, August 25, on a warrant that was issued on August 19. His bond was set at $4,000 surety with ten percent cash allowed. He posted $400, was released and given a day to be in court.

Last week, Hughes appeared in Greene Superior Court for an initial hearing and was charged with auto theft – theft of an entire automobile, a Level 6 felony. A public defender was appointed to represent him.

The auto that was allegedly stolen in this case was owned by Dustin Turley, an inmate in the Greene County Jail. It was a 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Sgt. Brian Pilant of the Jasonville Police Department started an investigation into a stolen vehicle on Saturday, August 15, when Turley’s brother came to the police department said Turley had contacted him, told him he’d bought a Jeep with a blown engine and that he’d taken the Jeep to a garage to see about getting it fixed.

He said Turley asked him to go get the Jeep because he couldn’t afford to fix it right then. Turley’s brother told Sgt. Pilant that when he got to the garage, the Jeep was gone. He said the garage owner told him a wrecker showed up on August 13 and towed the Jeep and the brother located the Jeep at an auto auction in Indianapolis. He said personnel at the auction told him Charles Hughes sold the Jeep to them and gave them a title. But the brother provided Sgt. Pilant with a written bill of sale showing Turley had purchased the Jeep on July 23.

When Sgt. Pilant talked to Turley at the jail, Turley said he bought the Jeep, nobody bought it with him and he didn’t give anybody permission to sell it. He said the title to the Jeep was in his trailer where his cousin and her boyfriend, Charles Hughes, stay.

Sgt. Pilant said the garage owner told him Turley was the person who brought the Jeep to him to see about getting it fixed. He said later he got a call from someone who said they were the person who bought the Jeep but they couldn’t afford to fix it. He said they asked him to leave the key under the floor mat and the man said he’d pick it up later. The garage owner said he did leave the key under the floor mat, not knowing it was not the Jeep’s owner who had called.

When Sgt. Pilant talked to Hughes, Hughes alleged he was part owner and had paid money on the Jeep. When asked if he had any paperwork to prove that, Hughes said the bill of sale was wrong. He admitted he was the one who sold the jeep to an auto auction.

When Sgt. Pilant talked to the man who sold the Jeep to Turley, the man said when Turley came to pick the Jeep up, another guy was with him but the guy didn’t talk and didn’t have anything to do with the sale. He agreed he wrote the bill of sale out and it was correct.

Personnel at the auto auction said Hughes was the person they issued a check to for the Jeep and they said Hughes gave them the title.

When Sgt. Pilant checked criminal records for Hughes, he learned Hughes has been previously convicted of auto theft – four times, in June of 2015 in Marion County, in November of 2017 in Hendricks County, in July of 2018 in Hancock County, and in March of 2018 in Brown County.

In addition to the felony charge, the prosecution intends to ask for a sentence enhancement for a habitual offender.