A Perry man arrested Thursday for allegedly pilfering from vehicles in the hospital parking lot.
Chol Masher Koueth, 34, of 2516 Perry Park Ave., Perry, was charged with two counts of third-degree burglary-motor vehicle, two counts of third-degree theft and possession of drug paraphernalia.
The incident began about 11:30 a.m. Thursday in the parking lot of the Dallas County Hospital, where officers of the Perry Police Department responded to a report of vehicles being burglarized.
An investigation by the officers led to Koueth’s residence on Perry Park Avenue, where a search disclosed cash, bank cards and other personal property believed stolen from the vehicles, according to court records.
As the officers were placing Koueth in handcuffs, it was found that he allegedly “had a methamphetamine smoking pipe in his hands,” according to court records.
Koueth is held in the Dallas County Jail on a $8,000 cash or surety bond. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing May 15 in Dallas County District Court.
Koueth was arrested in Perry in January on a charge of reckless use of fire or explosives after he allegedly started a fire on the outside wall of the Casey’s General Store on east Willis Avenue. The case is pending in Dallas County District Court. He was convicted of first-degree arson in September 2022 in Polk County District Court. He was convicted of theft in 2010 and 2014 in Roanoke, Virginia, according to court records.
*A criminal charge is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
