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Teen faces felony charges

A Waupaca teen is accused of stealing two cars in just over two weeks.

Tyler J. Pellerino, 18, is charged with two counts of operating a vehicle without the owner’s consent and operating without a driver’s license.

Because he was convicted in May 2015 of operating a vehicle without consent, criminal damage to property, illegal possession of a prescription drug and possession of marijuana, Pellerino has been charged as a repeat offender.

On Jan. 15, Waupaca Police Officer Nicole Hahn was dispatched to a home on Maple Street in response to a stolen vehicle report.

The victim told Hahn that he parked his truck had been in the driveway the prior night, but it was missing in the morning.

He said he had been watching a child that night and forgot to grab his keys from the truck before going into the house.

The missing truck was described as a red Ford F250 with a topper.

Hahn recognized the truck’s description from an earlier call. Pallerino’s mother had called about 6 a.m. and reported that Pallerino was drunk and driving around in a maroon truck, according to the criminal complaint.

Hahn contacted the mother, who said Pellerino told her he did not know who the truck belonged to, so he could not return it. She identified another Waupaca teen, 18-year-old Brandon C. Thorland, as a passenger in the truck with her son.

Thorland is charged with operating a vehicle without the owner’s consent. He is also charged with felony bail jumping due to November 2015 charges of felony child abuse and disorderly conduct.

Hahn later found the missing truck in the lower South Park parking lot. The truck’s owner said there was no damage but half a tank of gas was gone.

Hahn later spoke with Pellerino. He told the officer he had been walking around when a man pulled up in a truck and offered him a ride. He said the driver told him the truck was stolen, but denied that he stole the truck or drove it himself.

On Jan. 31, Hahn began investigating the theft of a silver 2005 Chevy Malibu. She spoke to Pellerino’s mother, who said Pellerino had been out with several friends the night before and had not returned home until 6 a.m.

On Feb. 1, Pellerino’s mother called Hahn. She said Pellerino told her that one of his friends took a car, but he did not get inside the car until a few blocks away from where it was stolen, the complaint says.

Pellerino told his mother the stolen vehicle was parked between two garages by Bethany Home.

Hahn found the Chevy parked between two maintenance sheds at Bethany Home.

When Waupaca Police Officer Brent Krueger spoke with him later that day, Pellerino accused a friend of stealing the car. Pellerino said they traveled to West Bloomfield, Fremont, Bear Creek and back to Waupaca. He also admitted to doing most of the driving, according to the criminal complaint.

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