COLDWATER, Mich. (WLKI)- A Detroit-area man has been arrested following a multi-county investigation into a stolen trailer and other alleged thefts across the region.
The Branch County Sheriff's Office says 29-year-old Speed Miller was taken into custody Oct. 12 in the Orchard Lake area with assistance from the Metro Detroit Auto Theft Recovery Team.
The investigation began Aug. 29 after a trailer was reported stolen in Algansee Township. The case was later assigned to the sheriff's office Criminal Investigation Division.
Detectives used search warrants and data obtained from AT&T, Facebook and Instagram as they worked to identify a suspect. Investigators say the evidence linked Miller to the stolen trailer case.
Authorities also say Miller is a suspect in livestock theft investigations involving Michigan and neighboring states. Detectives had previously attempted to speak with him at his Romulus home, but the sheriff's office says he fled before investigators could contact him.
Miller was initially lodged in the Branch County Jail and arraigned on a charge of larceny involving property valued between $1,000 and $2,000.
The sheriff's office says detectives later followed up on information that Miller may have possessed a firearm at a home on Lester Road in Algansee Township. Investigators recovered a weapon at the residence, according to the department.
The Branch County Prosecutor's Office then authorized additional felony weapons charges, along with a habitual offender enhancement. Miller was arraigned on those charges Wednesday.
Sheriff Fred Blankenship credited community members for providing information that helped investigators and praised the coordination between agencies. The investigation involved the Michigan State Police, Metro Detroit Auto Theft Recovery Team, Southwest Commercial Auto and Recovery Unit, and the U.S. Secret Service.
All charges are accusations, and Miller is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.