MIDVALE, Utah -- A pair of suspected car thieves were arrested Tuesday, and Unified Police say a Midvale resident's pit bulls helped them apprehend one of the suspects.
A police pursuit began when a patrolman spotted a Chevy Malibu driving erratically along Ft. Union Boulevard. The Malibu had been stolen in Holladay on Monday.
When the officer attempted to stop the car, the driver allegedly sped off and eventually crashed the vehicle in a Midvale neighborhood.
Police say Joshua Aders, 26, and his passenger, 24-year-old Nathan Osness fled the crash scene in different directions.
Osness was apprehended within a few minutes after the crash, but Aders evaded police until they heard the barking of two pit bulls, Chomper and Lily, who belong to Brandee DiStefano.
"Fortunately, those dogs barking certainly alerted us to that area where that second suspect was at and we were able to get over and get him caught," said Lt. Justin Hoyal, Unified Police Department.
DiStefano said Aders deserved to be caught.
"It serves him right. I bet he felt stupid going in my backyard," DiStefano said.
Both suspects were booked into the Salt Lake County Metro Jail Tuesday.
Osness faces a second-degree felony charge of receiving or transferring a stolen motor vehicle and a Class B misdemeanor charge of fleeing.
Aders also faces a second-degree felony charge of receiving or transferring a stolen motor vehicle, a third-degree felony charge of fleeing / causing property damage and a Class B misdemeanor charge of reckless driving.
