Nashville man tries “to knock the dings out…” of borrowed car with stolen tools

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24-year-old Deric Whidby was charged with burglary and driving while on a suspended license after he attempted to steal tools to repair a borrowed vehicle from a Madison resident’s woodshed.

On May 21st, a citizen notified police of a gray Nissan Versa parked sideways at the residence of 637 Delaware Ave. in Madison. Officer Otto was dispatched to the address and, upon arrival, located a car matching the given description. The vehicle was reported to have its driver’s side door ajar and appeared to have sustained damage to the right side of the car.

Deric Whidby (MNPD)
Deric Whidby (MNPD)

Otto noticed a man, later identified as Deric Whidby, standing next to the home’s opened shed door. Whidby was discovered wielding multiple small axes, taken from inside. Otto prompted Whidby to let go of the axes, to which he complied.

The owner of the home, Hershel Baxter, claimed to have no former knowledge of Whidby and did not give him permission to be inside the woodshed. Baxter recognized that the shed’s padlock had been disconnected but was later found inside Whidby’s pants pocket. Whidby explained that he had entered the shed to “find tools to knock the dings out of the car.”

Further investigation revealed that the Versa was registered to a Bruce Gardner. Gardner claimed that, while the thief did have permission to operate the vehicle, the vehicle had no damage prior to Whidby’s control. The cause of the car’s damages is unknown. The ARMS computer program revealed Whidby to be driving on a suspended license.

Deric Whidby was arrested and charged with burglary and driving on a suspended license. His bond was set at $8,000.



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