LICKING COUNTY, Ohio (WCMH) — A central Ohio sheriff’s office is working with an agency hundreds of miles away involving phones stolen during a music festival in Licking County.
The Licking County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) said the in-depth investigation involved federal agencies in a recent post on Facebook. The office had gotten several calls about phones being stolen from the Lost Lands Music Festival, according to the post.
“It was a really rude reality check that just because you’re in such an amazing area does not mean there’s not bad people there,” said Bryanna Molina.
The LCSO also wrote the office is working with the North Carolina State Highway Patrol (NCSHP) after stolen phones were found during a traffic stop there. The stop happened Sept. 25 and 152 cell phones were found in the car, a sergeant with the NCSHP said.
“How did it get right here from Ohio and just happened to be like, happened to be stopped all the way over in North Carolina, I was surprised,” Molina said.
The NCSHP said 20 of the phones were confirmed to be stolen and work is being done to identify owners of the rest to confirm additional thefts. The phones positively identified so far have been linked to the music festival, according to NCSHP. All four people in the car were arrested and charged with 20 counts each of possession of stolen property. They’re all from Florida.
“I really hope that I get my phone back soon as well as everyone else and I just kind of, I hope they’re held accountable,” Molina said.
Molina used her phone for a lot more than just calls, texts and taking pictures. She has type one diabetes and used it to monitor her levels.
“With everyone else’s phones, mine as well, it had memories, it has information, like that’s stressful enough not having it,” Molina said. “But for me my phone also kind of, in extreme forms it helps keep me alive and it makes my life easier. Besides this one situation that kind of created an extra obstacle for me, the rest of the festival was absolutely amazing.”
