Man accused of stealing police vehicle with K-9 inside while officers investigated shooting

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KFVS) - A man is accused of stealing a Cape Girardeau police vehicle with a police K-9 inside while officers investigated a report of shots fired.

Gregory Ross, 59, was charged with felony first-degree tampering with a motor vehicle and felony stealing.

He is currently being held on a $10,000 cash-only bond.

Cape Girardeau police were called at 11 p.m. on Thursday, March 23 to a report of shots fired in the 1100 block of South Ellis Street after receiving a ShotSpotter alert.

They said, due to the seriousness of the incident, one of the officers quickly got out of his patrol car to go to the scene. The officer reported when he got out, he tried to lock it; however, he is unsure if the lock engaged.

As officers were returning to their patrol vehicles around 12 a.m., they saw the patrol vehicle with K-9 Jango inside was missing.

The officers immediately started searching the area. The vehicle was found around 11:38 p.m. on Thursday, about 1 mile away, on Merriwether Street in front of the city-owned Merriwether Street Pumping Station.

According to police, the vehicle was undamaged and no equipment was stolen.

“It’s a major thing to happen to anybody’s vehicle, but when you’re talking a patrol vehicle with several thousand dollars’ worth of equipment inside, we definitely want to prevent that from happening,” Cape Girardeau Police Officer Bobby Newton said.

Police say K-9 Jango was found uninjured inside the vehicle.

Court documents state nearby video surveillance showed a man in a dark jacket get out of the vehicle and go into the city-owned restrooms. The man was later identified as Greg Ross.

According to the documents, when asked if he took the police vehicle, Ross told investigators it was possible since he was “under stress.”

Regarding the shooting investigation, Antwan Petty, 26, of Cape Girardeau, was charged with unlawful use of a weapon.

He is being held on a $25,000 cash bond.

Police say during the investigation they found a dozen 9mm shell casings on the porch of a home.

Court documents state officers also found a gun, believed to be used in the shooting, in a bathroom of the home.

Earlier Thursday night, police also responded to a report of shots fired near Cape West Laundry on North Silver Springs Road near Arena Park.

Police said they were able to recover several pieces of evidence from the scene and their investigation into this case continues.

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