Staff Report

Collin Piner

WARSAW — A Winona Lake teenager was arrested for allegedly burglarizing a Warsaw gas station.

Collin Piner, 18, 1202 Wooster Road Lot 47, Winona Lake, is charged with burglary, a level 5 felony; theft, a class A misdemeanor; and criminal mischief, a class B misdemeanor.

On July 19, Warsaw Police officers responded to a burglary report at the Phillips 66 gas station on Center Street. The point of entry was the business’s south facing door, and a second door was shattered.

The store’s owner provided law enforcement with video surveillance footage of two male suspects wearing face coverings.

According to court documents, one of the men threw a rock into the business’s south entrance/exit doors. Both men entered the back storage area, forcing entry into the merchandise area while holding what appeared to be semi-automatic handguns. While in the business, the men took numerous tobacco products. They left the scene and headed toward a nearby mobile home park.

WPD posted an image of one of the suspects to their Facebook page and received information that the suspect was Piner. Officers went to speak with Piner, who requested a lawyer.

Officers obtained a search warrant for Piner’s residence and determined he possessed clothing items that were depicted in the business’s surveillance footage. It was determined the second suspect was a person under the age of 18.

The underage individual allegedly said he and a friend went for a walk and planned to break into the Phillips 66 gas station. They threw two rocks at windows to break into the building and went into the business, taking vapes and a bag of tobacco.

The person told police he did not want to say who was with him during the burglary.

Piner was booked in the Kosciusko County Jail on July 29.