Suspected jewelry thief busted after joining local half marathon

After stumbling upon a half marathon in Dalton, Ga., a suspected jewelry thief thought he had discovered the perfect escape.

Unfortunately for him, an outfit consisting of jeans, a long-sleeve shirt, a lack of running shoes and no race bib did not prove conducive to fitting in with local athletes at a conveniently located half marathon.

According to local NBC station WRCB-TV, 26-year-old James Ownbey was suspected of breaking and entering and figured his best shot at evading police was by joining the ongoing Red Carpet Half Marathon. After running with local half marathoners for about a kilometre, local authority handling traffic spotted the suspicious-looking man.

“I noticed from a little ways off there was just somebody who didn’t quite fit in with everybody else,” Detective Sam Eaton told WRCB-TV.

Ownbey was arrested and his vehicle was discovered to contain the stolen goods, which included an empty safe that originally contained more than $52,000 worth of jewelry. Despite running a portion of the half marathon, Ownbey was left empty-handed without a finisher’s medal.