LAWRENCEBURG, KY — Police in Lawrenceburg arrested two people Tuesday evening as they investigated a series of attacks on Flock cameras across Anderson, Franklin and Woodford counties. The cameras, which are used for license plate reading, had been damaged or removed in multiple incidents that local agencies say appeared connected.
Lawrenceburg police said detectives tied together reports from neighboring departments after finding that four of the city’s cameras had been destroyed or taken away. A witness account from Woodford County helped officers identify a black truck and trailer linked to the case. Police later stopped the vehicle in Lawrenceburg and took the two suspects into custody without incident.
Witness report in Woodford County helped link the cases
The investigation widened after a witness contacted Versailles police and said they saw a black truck pulling a trailer stop along KY 33 in Woodford County. According to police, the witness reported that a woman got out of the vehicle and fired a shotgun at a Flock camera before the truck continued toward Lexington.
Versailles police passed that information to Lawrenceburg detectives and officers. That tip gave investigators a vehicle description and a route that helped connect the Woodford County incident to similar camera damage in nearby counties. Police have not said how many cameras were hit in each location, but they believe the incidents were part of the same pattern.
Stop in Lawrenceburg ended with arrests near Pumphouse Road
After the vehicle was reported heading toward Lexington, officers later found it in Lawrenceburg near Pumphouse Road. Lawrenceburg police then worked with deputies from the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office to detain the occupants. Authorities said the arrests were made without any struggle or injury.
The arrests came after several days of concern about the camera damage in the region. Police said the damaged or missing devices had been discovered in recent days, prompting detectives to reach out to surrounding agencies for help. That coordination helped them identify the vehicle and the people inside it.
Jim Thacker and Jovanna Grobe face multiple criminal charges
Police identified the suspects as Jim Thacker, 44, of Anderson County, and Jovanna Grobe, 18, who is originally from Powell County and 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, discharging a firearm or other device across a public road, and failing to notify the Department of Transportation of an address change. Police said both were criminally charged after the arrests Tuesday evening.
Two shotguns and ammunition were found in the vehicle
Officers said they found two shotguns in the vehicle occupied by Thacker and Grobe. Investigators believe the weapons were used to destroy the cameras. Police also said the vehicle contained numerous boxes of ammunition.
The recovered items are part of the evidence detectives are reviewing as they continue to sort out the separate incidents in Anderson, Woodford and Franklin counties. Authorities have not said whether the cameras were shot, smashed, removed, or all three in every case, but they believe the same suspects were involved in the damage or removal of the devices.
More charges may follow as county investigations continue
Lawrenceburg police said the case is still open and that additional charges could be filed in other counties as more facts are gathered. The investigation now stretches across at least three counties, with officers from multiple agencies sharing information about the damaged Flock cameras and the vehicle seen leaving the Woodford County scene.
For now, police say the arrests mark a major step in a broader inquiry into the repeated camera vandalism. Investigators are still determining the full scope of the incidents, but they have already connected the suspects to damage or removal of Flock cameras in Anderson, Woodford and Franklin counties.
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