THOMASVILLE — In a spree of auto thefts, two out of three vehicles have been found by the Thomasville Police Department.

Throughout the last couple of days TPD received reports of a Ford truck, a Ford Transit van and a red Nissan Versa being stolen from nearby areas.

The Ford truck was stolen last night from East Jefferson Street but was recovered within two hours of it being shared on social media this morning.

The Ford Transit van was property of a NAPA store located on East Jackson Street and was stolen this morning while an employee was opening the local business.

Lt. Toby Knifer, Thomasville Police Department Criminal Investigations Division commander, said that the van was recovered after Grady County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a shoplifting in progress. 

“When they got to the incident, three subjects were inside the van. They conducted a traffic stop, detained the three subjects that were in our stolen vehicle and recovered that vehicle at that time,” he said.

Grady County Sheriff’s Office will be charging the three suspects with shoplifting and theft. 

The last vehicle reported stolen has not been recovered.

The red 2017 Nissan Versa was stolen on Monday from Montrose Drive. TPD asks that anyone with information should contact them at 229-227-3302. 

Knifer said at this time there is no evidence linking the three auto thefts to each other. 

“At first, I thought they were, because they were actually stolen within close vicinity of each other,” he said. “As of right now, we don’t have the evidence to say they are related.”

Residents should be aware of their vehicles and take extra precaution to ensure crimes like these are avoided, Knifer said. 

“Lock your vehicles up and remove your keys,” he said. “These were all unlocked vehicles with keys left in the vehicle. It makes it an easy crime of opportunity.”