Man accused of escaping, stealing cars is arrested

6-day case ends in Williams County

1/2/2017

KUNKLE, Ohio — A man accused of escaping from custody in Michigan, then stealing cars over a six-day period was taken into custody early Sunday in Williams County, the Williams County Sheriff’s Office said.

Jade Herzog, 41, was captured near Kunkle shortly after midnight, after he allegedly tried to ram a sheriff’s deputy’s vehicle and crashed in a ditch on County Road O between county roads 16 and 15.

Authorities said he was in “protective observation” at Mercy Health St. Vincent Medical Center in Toledo. He faces multiple felony charges along with the previous drug charges in Hillsdale County, Michigan.

Authorities said Herzog walked away Dec. 26 from Hillsdale Hospital, where he was on medical leave.

On Dec. 29, he is believed to have stolen a vehicle from Stryker, Ohio, and driven to Kunkle, where authorities believe he entered the home of people he knew and took a cell phone. Deputies said the stolen vehicle was seen about noon Dec. 30 at Lake Seneca in northern Williams County.

After that, Herzog is believed to have stolen a vehicle from Lake Seneca. Deputies also believe Herzog stole items from vehicles in Hillsdale and Branch counties in Michigan and Steuben County, Indiana. Williams County Sheriff Steven Towns said Herzog found cars with the keys in the ignition.

Just before midnight on New Year’s Eve, Herzog tried to use a stolen credit card at a motel on Ohio Rt. 108 near the Wauseon exit of the Ohio Turnpike, authorities said. A clerk alerted the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office but Herzog got away before sheriff’s deputies and Wauseon police arrived.

Herzog rammed a Wauseon police vehicle and started a pursuit that led into Williams County, county officials said.

Herzog is believed to have stolen a vehicle about 12:15 a.m. from a residence near Alvordton, Ohio. Authorities claim he drove to Alvordton, where they say he stole another vehicle. That vehicle became disabled, so he stole yet another vehicle, deputies said.

Aided by citizen tips, Williams County deputies found Herzog driving a pickup he used to try to ram a deputy sheriff’s vehicle. A tire blew on the pickup, he lost control, and crashed in a ditch.

Sheriff Towns said he did not believe Herzog suffered significant injuries.

Herzog was convicted of grand theft of a vehicle in Williams County in 2014. According to the Hillsdale News, he pleaded guilty in Hillsdale County Circuit Court in November to possession of methamphetamine.

Contact Tom Troy: tomtroy@theblade.com or 419-724-6058 or on Twitter @TomFTroy.