AKRON, Ohio — During the investigation into a 58-foot bridge stolen from a public park last month, Akron police located the partially disassembled bridge on a property in Sharon Township and arrested a 63-year-old man, and not Carmen Sandiego, for felony theft.
Based on tips and additional information that Akron police investigators received, David Bramley, of Sharon Township in Medina County, was identified as a person of interest in the case of the missing bridge, which measured 10 feet wide, 6 feet high and spanned 58 feet.
On Friday at about 2:45 p.m., a team of police officer converged on a property in Medina County and conducted a search warrant, according to a news release from Akron police. During a search of the property, the bridge was found partially disassembled.
Bramley was arrested and charged with felony theft.
Detectives discovered Bramley, who used to work in the Akron area, paid a local trucking company to use a crane to get the bridge on and off a vehicle that transported it to the Medina County property.
Arrangements are being made to return the bridge to Akron in the coming days.
“Members of the Akron Police Department work tirelessly every day, to foster and strengthen relationships, while enhancing public trust throughout the community,” a police official stated in the news release. “Utilizing the spirit of those partnerships, detectives, along with law enforcement personnel from neighboring jurisdictions, were able to help locate the stolen bridge and bring this investigation to a close.”
The bridge, made of composite material, was once installed at Middlebury Run Park near Seiberling Street in Akron. In the early 2000s, the bridge was removed as part of a creek and wetlands restoration project and had been stored in a nearby field. Although the city had plans on utilizing the bridge for another project, those plans came to a screeching halt last month when officials noticed that the treated deck boards had been removed. Then, about a week later, the whole thing was gone.
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