Bethlehem Police said they arrested two men who allegedly broke into a Glenmont car wash on Route 9W and robbed it.
Jeffery E. Vautrin, 28, of 8 Manor Sites, Cohoes, and James Clark, whose name and age were not listed, were charged with third-degree burglary and third-degree criminal mischief both felonies and fifth-degree conspiracy and possession of burglary tools ` both misdemeanors ` on Jan. 31.
Police said they responded to the car wash’s burglary alarm, which was activated in the change room of the business, and, when officers arrived on the scene, they discovered Vautrin and Clark standing near an open door.
One of them was wearing a black sweatshirt and jeans and the other was wearing a brown sweatshirt and cargo pants, according to the arrest report, and as officers approached the two men they fled the building.
Bethlehem Police said they pursued Vautrin and Clark in their patrol car as they ran on foot towards Route 9W and advised them to stop, but as they approached the roadway, Vautrin ran south on 9W and Clark continued west toward the Bethlehem Rural Cemetery.
Police were able to apprehend Vautrin on the road and returned to the car wash with him in custody as two other Bethlehem Police officers responded to the area, the report states. A short time later officers were able to locate Clark behind the Glenmont Plaza and place him under arrest before returning to the car wash, according to police.
Police discovered that the change room door had been broken and that Clark had a 2007 Honda Civic parked in the nearby cemetery that was registered under a woman’s name, the report states.
It was later learned that Clark was dating the owner of the vehicle and he had `borrowed` the car, according to the arrest report.
Police said they also discovered a hammer in a snow bank along Route 9W that they believed was used to break into the car wash, and after taking a statement from the owner of the business, officers took photographs of the door and the damaged change machine.
Police did not release the amount of money allegedly stolen from the car wash.
Both men were transported to the Bethlehem Police Department without incident and arraigned by Bethlehem Town Justice Ryan Donovan before being sent to the Albany County Correctional Facility without bail, the report states.
Police said video surveillance would be secured as evidence.
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