Apex police arrest man after three-car theft spree across Sanford, Lee County

Apex police arrested Bobby Alee McIntyre, 25, after officers said he was driving a stolen vehicle tied to a three-car theft spree that moved from Lee County into Wake County. The arrest came on Thursday night, April 23, 2026, around 8:10 p.m., near homes under construction in the 2100 block of Barrier Ridge Way off Olive Chapel Road by NC 540 Toll.

Police located McIntyre in the Chapel Ridge area after a 911 call helped point officers to the stolen vehicle. WRAL reported that he was accused of stealing three vehicles out of Lee County, including the one he was driving when Apex officers stopped him. CBS 17 said the arrest ended the spree after three car thefts in Sanford.

The case underscores how quickly stolen-car crime can spread across county and city lines. A vehicle taken in Sanford can end up miles away in Apex before officers catch up, leaving drivers without transportation and forcing them to scramble for rides to work, school, or medical appointments while dealing with insurance claims and recovery steps.

Wake County mugshots records list McIntyre’s booked charges as misdemeanor larceny, possession of stolen goods/property, and larceny of motor vehicle. Those charges put the arrest into the county’s criminal record system and mark the end of a sequence that tied together Sanford, Lee County and Apex in a single night of theft and police response.

For Wake County residents, the location matters as much as the arrest. Barrier Ridge Way sits near a growing stretch of western Apex, where homes under construction and new roads around Olive Chapel Road can create pockets of vulnerability if vehicles are left unsecured. In this case, a fast 911 call and a quick response kept the spree from stretching farther into Wake County.