Stolen tobacco products recovered

YOUNGSTOWN — Police are investigating some “people of interest,” but no arrests have been made following recovery of a large quantity of stolen tobacco products, according to Detective Sgt. Tom Parry, who is probing the matter.

The cigars and cigarettes, with a wholesale value of about $40,000, were stolen from the wholesale Valley Grocers warehouse at 1402 Elm St. on Nov. 3, and police recovered most of them Monday at 216 S. Garland Ave., he said.

A witness to the Elm Street break-in gave police a description of a van seen at the Elm Street location.

Parry said he found a van matching that description outside the Garland address next to a pickup truck loaded with the stolen merchandise, with more of the stolen goods inside the Garland building.

Police impounded and inventoried the stolen cigars and cigarettes, the van and the pickup truck.

Parry said Thursday that he was surprised police were still able to find the stolen goods six days after the theft. “I would have thought that the items probably would have been sold by that time,” he added.