North Vernon man facing charges in theft of gun, tablet during party

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A 25-year-old man facing charges in two other counties now faces charges related to the theft of a handgun and a computer tablet during a Christmas party in the Kurtz area.

Matthew D. Jenkins of North Vernon admitted his involvement in the incident reported Dec. 21 by the residents of a home in the 5900 block of Cleveland Street, Jackson County Reserve Officer Scott Davis said.

Davis said the admission led him to request two theft charges against Jenkins, who is being held in the Bartholo-mew County Jail on unrelated charges.

Jenkins admitted his involvement in the thefts during a recent interview with Jackson County Detective Tom Barker at the jail in Columbus, Davis said.

Police said they believe Jenkins sold the computer to someone he knows and threw the .380-caliber handgun into a lake at Country Squire Lakes north of North Vernon, Davis said.

That’s where Jenkins had been living until his arrest on Christmas Eve as part of a separate investigation.

Davis said police continue to investigate Jenkins’ sale of the computer tablet to the acquaintance. The tablet has not been recovered, but the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department’s dive/swift water rescue team planned to search the lake for the handgun Friday.

Jenkins faces charges of theft and obliterating the serial number on a handgun as part of the separate investigation by the Jennings County Sheriff’s Department, Davis said.

He also was arrested at the same time on a Bartholomew County warrant for failure to appear for a probation revocation hearing on a domestic battery conviction and a Bartholomew County writ of attachment. The writ of attachment has since been cleared up, Davis said, but Jenkins remains in jail on the warrant for failure to appear.

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