October 23, 2024

A Weatherford man was recently arrested and charged after allegedly stealing go-karts from a Clinton store.

According to a probable cause affidavit, on September 19, police responded to a call at the store on Gary Boulevard. The manager reported finding “a pickaxe stuck in the gate located on the north side of the building,” which prompted her to check the security footage.

The footage allegedly showed a man entering a locked, fenced-in area between 3:06 a.m. and 5:18 a.m., breaking the lock, and pushing one go-kart, then another, out of the area.

The combined value of the go-karts is estimated at $1,751.98.

Later that day, the store manager contacted police again, stating that a woman had come in asking if anyone had found her son’s phone, which he had lost near the store around 3 a.m. that morning. The phone was reportedly found by an employee near the north side of the building, close to another cut chain-link fence.

The woman was identified, and her address was obtained through water records. On September 20, an officer drove by the woman’s residence and observed a tarp covering items on the south side of the property. The woman met them at the door before going inside to get dressed.

When the woman returned and took officers to the south side of the residence, the tarp was neatly folded, and the items previously under it were gone.

Later, officers requested consent to search the property, but it was denied.

The affidavit stated that officers would obtain and serve a search warrant. During the search of the residence, the two go-karts were allegedly found.

The affidavit said that 41-year-old Josh Wooldridge and the woman were taken to the police department for interviews. Wooldridge initially denied involvement in the theft, claiming he had purchased the go-karts from a friend. However, after being shown the security footage, which showed a man wearing shoes similar to those Wooldridge had on, and being reminded that his phone had been found near a cut fence at the scene, Wooldridge allegedly confessed.

Wooldridge was charged with second-degree burglary and knowingly concealing stolen property. No charges have been brought against the woman.