Third arrest made in catalytic converter thefts

Clay deputies arrested a third man in connection with the thefts of eight catalytic converters in an Orange Park industrial area that occurred in April.

According to court documents, deputies arrested 42-year-old Mark Hintz for the thefts. Hintz joins co-defendants, John Dale and Shane White. The three are accused of victimizing three businesses in the area of Corporate Way and Industrial Loop by cutting the exhaust parts off business vehicles using a reciprocating saw.

Detectives used surveillance video from one of the businesses and their knowledge of Dale and White in the Duval County jail for similar crimes in Jacksonville to identify the defendants in the Orange Park thefts.

Interviewed at the Duval County lockup, Dale told detectives he dropped off the other two men near the industrial park and waited at a nearby bingo hall, acting as a lookout. After receiving a ping on his phone from the other defendants, Dale drove down a railroad track to pick up White and Hintz.