Homeless Man Accused Of Stealing, Crashing Pickup Truck From Diner Parking Lot

CONCORD, NH — A homeless man now located in Concord was accused by police of stealing and crashing a pickup truck on Aug. 20, according to an affidavit.

Around 1:15 p.m., police were sent to Loudon Road after a man reported his Aranco Oil company pickup truck stolen from the parking lot of the Red Arrow Diner. The complainant said a man jumped into the truck, a red Ford F-250, with Aranco written on the side, and drove away, on Loudon Road.

A few minutes before officers began investigating the stolen truck, a hit-and-run crash was reported near the scene just after 1 p.m.

Two women inside the damaged vehicle, a Toyota Tacoma truck, reported injuries, and Concord fire and rescue teams were sent to the scene. They were examined, the women refused transport, and firefighters and EMTs cleared the scene. An officer moved the pickup truck to the side of the road.

The woman said they were driving past the Red Arrow Diner when another pickup truck turned into Loudon Road traffic and struck the front quarter of her vehicle. She told the police everything happened so fast. The driver confirmed she saw “Aranco” on the side of the truck, a report stated.

Police began searching the area, attempting to find the stolen truck.

About six minutes later, police received a tip about a truck driving on its rims near the Regency Hill Estates at 12 East Side Drive. The tipster told police the man was removing items from the truck and putting them into a shopping cart.

The reporting officer went to the apartment complex and found the man. He was told not to move, placed in handcuffs, and patted down for weapons, the officer wrote. The suspect was identified as Seth L. Skillin, 43, homeless. Other officers arrived, including a detective. Skillin was read his rights and questioned but did not want to speak to the detective, the affidavit stated.

The reporting officer confirmed the truck was the same one stolen from the Red Arrow Parking lot and said there were various tools in the shopping cart.

Skillin, the officer noted, had a Massachusetts license, suspended in November 2023. He was arrested on theft by unauthorized taking-$1,501-plus and receiving stolen property-$1,501-plus charges, both felonies, as well as driving after revocation or suspension and conduct after an accident.

The vehicle’s owner arrived at the scene and gave consent to search the vehicle. Another company employee told police they had footage of the man stealing the truck from a computer inside the vehicle. The men said they attempted to stop him but were unsuccessful, with one grabbing the door handle before it sped away. The reporting officer said the picture from the truck’s computer matched Skillin, the affidavit said.

An audit of the items in the shopping cart came to about $2,500 worth of tools.

A witness at Regency Hill Estates told police she heard the truck drive into the parking lot because of the noise coming from its front-end damage. She found the situation odd and began listening to her scanner and recording video footage.

When she heard the registration of the stolen truck, which matched the truck with the damage, she called the police.

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