Four Amish teens charged after Holmes County break-in, chase

A late-evening break-in in Salt Creek Township turned into a fast-moving chase that sent four Amish teenagers to the Erie County Detention Center and put Holmes County’s rural response system to the test.

The Holmes County Sheriff’s Office said deputies were called at about 7:54 p.m. June 21 to a home after a 911 caller reported that several juveniles were actively trying to get inside. When deputies arrived, they saw multiple suspects running from the property and immediately pursued them on foot. Three juveniles were taken into custody at the scene, and two others were found about three miles away after an extended search.

Four juveniles were charged with felony burglary and trespass in a habitation, obstructing official business and underage alcohol offenses. One of the juveniles also faced an assault charge. Deputies also arrested an adult male at the property on underage alcohol offenses. Two buggies tied to the suspects were towed from the scene.

Wayne County Sheriff’s Office personnel and South Central Fire District Fire and EMS assisted during the response, which stretched beyond the original property as deputies tracked the suspects through the countryside. In a county where many homes sit back from the road and travel often depends on buggies as well as vehicles, the case drew attention because it combined burglary, youth drinking and the practical difficulty of stopping fleeing suspects before they disappear into open ground.

Holmes County had 44,223 residents in the 2020 Census and an estimated 44,970 on July 1, 2025, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The sheriff’s office says it has about 56 employees and full police jurisdiction throughout the county, a scope that makes quick reporting and coordinated backup critical when a call becomes an active crime scene.

Sheriff Tim Zimmerly has led the office since January 1993. He has also tied the county’s law-enforcement memory to earlier underage drinking enforcement, including a September 2016 party in Millersburg that he described as a record-setting bust, with 73 arrests and 35 juveniles among those taken into custody.