Two Anderson County residents are facing felony charges after Lawrenceburg police say they tracked down a truck linked to a shooting spree that left Flock Safety cameras destroyed across three Central Kentucky counties. Investigators recovered two shotguns and numerous boxes of ammunition believed to have been used in the incidents, according to police.
The case broke open after Lawrenceburg police discovered that four Flock cameras in the city had been destroyed or completely removed, according to the Lawrenceburg Police Department. Investigators reached out to the Franklin County Sheriff's Office and the Versailles Police Department, both of which reported similar camera incidents in their own jurisdictions, indicating that incidents had been reported in multiple jurisdictions.
A break in the case came from a witness who reported seeing a black truck pulling a trailer stop along Kentucky 33 in Woodford County. According to that witness account, a woman got out of the vehicle and shot a Flock camera with a shotgun before the truck continued on toward Lexington. The Versailles Police Department shared that witness information with Lawrenceburg investigators, who used it to locate the vehicle near Pumphouse Road in Lawrenceburg, where officers took two suspects into custody without incident, with assistance from the Anderson County Sheriff's Office.
Who Was Arrested and What They're Facing
Police identified the suspects as 44-year-old Jim Thacker of Anderson County and 18-year-old Jovanna Grobe, who is originally from Powell County but now lives in Anderson County. Thacker was charged with first-degree criminal mischief, conspiracy to commit first-degree criminal mischief, and having an open alcoholic beverage container in a motor vehicle. Grobe was charged with first-degree criminal mischief, complicity to first-degree criminal mischief, discharge of a firearm or other device across a public road, and failure to notify the Department of Transportation of an address change.
The first-degree criminal mischief charge is a Class D felony in Kentucky, punishable by one to five years in prison, and applies once property damage reaches $500 or more, according to WomensLaw.org. Thacker's conspiracy charge is scaled one grade below that underlying felony, making it a Class A misdemeanor under state law, per the Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Grobe was also charged with complicity. The firearm charge against Grobe is grounded in a state law that explicitly bars discharging a firearm, bow, or similar device upon, over, or across any public roadway, per the Kentucky Legislative Research Commission.
A Costly Target for Vandals
The four Lawrenceburg units involved in the incidents had either been destroyed or completely removed. Flock's cameras now form a sprawling network of more than 120,000 units nationwide, the security firm reports.
Police said additional charges could be filed in other jurisdictions as more information becomes available, leaving open the possibility that Franklin County or Woodford County authorities could pursue their own cases tied to the same spree.
Part of a Wider Kentucky Backlash
The Lawrenceburg arrests land amid a broader statewide reckoning with Flock's surveillance network. Kentucky lawmakers held hearings in Frankfort this month to debate imposing warrant requirements on the cameras amid rising privacy concerns and a surge in camera vandalism in Louisville. In August, Louisville police arrested a suspect for shooting at a local Flock camera. Hoodline has also reported camera vandalism and additional stolen cameras in Louisville.
Part of a Wider Kentucky Backlash Whether Central Kentucky's camera network remains intact remains to be seen as prosecutors weigh further charges.
