Arrest warrant issued for Bloomfield man

A warrant has been ordered for the arrest of Jeremy B. Swango of Bloomfield. He's accused of an attempted burglary of a garage at a residence on the Mineral/Koleen Road east of Bloomfield.

A male subject attempted to break-in to John Ridinger's garage on Nov. 5 but a neighbor heard loud banging at 11 a.m. then noticed a dark-colored car sitting behind the garage and saw a man wearing a dark-hooded jacket on the property. The neighbor notified Ridinger who notified police.

Greene County Sheriff's Deputy Aaron Smith responded to the scene and reported the garage door had been damaged. A door knob was knocked off and there were several large dents and fresh pry marks on the door.

Luckily, the property owner was able to provide surveillance video.

Sheriff's Det. Christopher McDonald joined the investigation and said the video showed a man in a dark hooded sweatshirt carrying a pry tool bending up the license plate on the car.

The male then put the pry tool into the car and pulled out a sledgehammer.

Although the male then left the camera's view, the surveillance provided audio and he is heard striking the door of the garage several times. The man then got into the car and left in a hurry.

The officers noted the back-up light on the car was out and there appeared to be extensive damage to the passenger side.

It was not until Nov. 18 when the detective was in Bloomington working on another case that a break came.

McDonald passed a car on the road with a bent-up license plate that looked like the vehicle in the video.

He recognized the driver as Swango. He turned around and tried to catch-up with him but lost him.

A check on Swango's registered vehicles resulted in a plate number, a home address, and a knock on Swango's door.

Swango was then interviewed at the Sheriff's Department.

According to a probable cause affidavit written by McDonald, Swango denied being at Ridinger's residence but when showed video clips, he agreed the car appeared to be his.

Swango gave consent for his vehicle to be searched and officers found a black hooded sweatshirt and a pry tool. Swango's car matched the description, had a backup light out, had damage on the passenger side and a bent-up license plate.

Preliminary charges of attempted burglary, a class C felony, and criminal mischief, a class B misdemeanor, were filed against Swango in Greene Circuit Court late Thursday. On Friday, the charges were approved and a warrant for his arrest was ordered.