STURGIS, Mich. – A stolen Amish buggy and horse were reunited with their owners Saturday evening after a woman reportedly snatched them from a Walmart parking lot earlier in the day.
Around 5:30 p.m., Sturgis police were called to the Walmart on South Centerville Road for a report of a missing buggy and horse. The Amish family, who had been shopping inside, returned to find their transportation gone.
A witness, a truck driver parked in the lot, told police he saw a woman steal the buggy and described the suspect. Interestingly, officers later revealed they had interacted with the same woman earlier at the Walmart, though the nature of that previous encounter was not disclosed.
Following up on the lead, a Sturgis police officer located the abandoned buggy and horse unharmed in the 1200 block of East Chicago Road later that evening. Officers then tracked down the female suspect at a nearby motel and arrested her without incident.
The 31-year-old woman from Sturgis faces charges of larceny and larceny of livestock. She was lodged at the St. Joseph County Jail pending an arraignment.
Thankfully, the horse was unharmed and the family’s buggy was returned, bringing this unusual episode to a happy ending.
