Talk about taking matters into your own hands.
Just after 8 a.m., a man called Portsmouth Police from the area of 3rd and Washington Street with a wild update—he said he had just spotted and stopped the same guy who robbed him earlier in the week at a Subway in Minford.
Police quickly looped in the Scioto County Sheriff’s Office, since the original case happened outside city limits. A deputy responded, and the man was held there until detectives arrived.
According to the earlier report, about $271 went missing from the Minford Subway. An employee told 911 a former worker came in, went behind the counter, grabbed cash from the register, and took off in a white Ford Expedition. Deputies searched at the time but came up empty.
That changed when the victim apparently recognized the suspect days later in Portsmouth and made the call.
Detectives arrived on scene and took Eric Powell into custody without further trouble.
He’s now sitting in the Scioto County Jail facing charges of safecracking, theft, and tampering with evidence. A preliminary hearing is set for April 16 in Portsmouth Municipal Court.
Let this be your reminder—if something feels off at work, especially involving former employees, it’s worth keeping a close eye on things. And sometimes, it’s not police who find the suspect first… it’s the victim.
