KOSCIUSKO COUNTY — Indiana State Police responded to a theft complaint from a railroad company by borrowing a high-end surveillance camera from a nearby agency, only to have that very camera taken by alleged thieves.

Haley Uteva Conrad, 29, 905 Main St., Milford; and Austin Ray Holdeman-Manges, 18, 19 E. North St., Milford, are both charged with theft, a level 6 felony; criminal mischief, a class A misdemeanor and trespassing on railroad property, a class B misdemeanor.

According to a report from the Indiana State Police, ISP received reports from railroad company CSX that recent thefts had occurred on the company’s property in Kosciusko County. In response, officers reported borrowing a covert camera from the Noble County Sheriff’s Department and placing it at the location.

On May 30, officers reported watching a man and woman, identified by police as Manges and Conrad, walk onto the property, where they were observed noticing the camera. Police said Manges approached the camera, looked it over thoroughly, took photographs of it and left the scene. According to the report, police observed Manges return some time later, place a coat over the camera, and remove it from the location.

Police went to Manges’ residence and questioned the man, who told police he had taken the camera and had struck the camera multiple times against a brick wall, causing damage. Police estimated the value of the camera at $22,000 and the amount of damage to be $750. Police also reported finding Conrad at the residence and upon being questioned, the woman admitted to being with Manges during the alleged theft.

An initial hearing has been scheduled for 1 p.m. on Aug. 12 in Kosciusko County Superior Court II.