Local Man in Custody Following Theft of 2024 Vehicle off the Lot of Harrison County Car Dealership
By Connect-Bridgeport Staff on June 09, 2025
According to WDTV, a man is now in prison after stealing a Jeep from a Harrison County dealership Thursday.
On June 5, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office received a report from Harrison County 911 officials about a stolen 2024 Jeep Wagoneer without a registration plate. This vehicle had allegedly ben stolen from the car lot of Black Bear Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM in Harrison County.
At about 1:50 p.m. deputies saw this vehicle traveling north on Center Avenue in Weston. They attempted to stop the vehicle near the intersection of Center and East Fourth Avenue, but instead of stopping, the driver fled the scene.
Sheriff Mickey Metz said that the suspect failed to stop at another intersection on Center and East Sixth Street, demonstrating “reckless disregard” for others on the road.
The suspect fled further up the street, but was stopped on the north end of Center Avenue by the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.
Joshua Wayne Merritt has been charged with felony fleeing with reckless indifference and grand larceny. He is now held in the Central Regional jail. A mugshot of Merritt is a broken image on the state's Website.
The 2024 Jeep Wagoneer has been successfully recovered and returned to the Black Bear dealership.
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