Flat Tire Leads To Arrest Of Man Stealing Wood: Cops

DUNBARTON, NH — A local man was arrested in the middle of the act of allegedly stealing a trailer full of pre-cut wood after the trailer popped a tire while he was reportedly fleeing the scene, according to police. Robert Sylvia, 51, of Dunbarton and Scituate, MA, was arrested on July 31, 2017, and charged with theft by unauthorized taking and receiving stolen property, both felonies, as well as driving after suspension/revocation-subsequent offense and criminal mischief. At just before 8 p.m. on Monday, a Robert Rogers Road resident reported a theft of wood at their home.

Editor’s Note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Dunbarton Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction. This link explains the name removal request process for NH Patch police reports.

The victim, according to a police report, alleged that someone had stolen a utility trailer that was loaded with pre-cut wood and then fled the scene with the trailer toward Bow. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Concord NH Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts.)

A sergeant and an officer caught up to the suspect – Sylvia – at the intersection of Robert Rogers Road and Jacqueline Drive with a flat tire on the trailer. Police stated on Facebook that the trailer and wood was given back to the victim and Sylvia was arrested on numerous charges. He was released on bail and is due in Merrimack Count Superior Court on Aug. 10.

More charges, police noted, may be forthcoming, and the case is still under investigation.

According to reports online, Sylvia has had a few run-ins with police in Massachusetts, including a drug dealing charge – steroids – in Scituate in July 2014, and a trespass charge in August 2012, according to Wicked Local Scituate. In a Quincy boat yard in 2013, he was allegedly involved in a shoplifting incident, according to MassMostWanted.org.