Police: Man stole from ex-employer

MILAN — A Berlin Heights man is facing two felonies after allegedly burglarizing his former employer's plant. Michael J. Hess, 47, of the 12200 block E. Ohio 61, was recently indicted for burglary, a third-degree felony, and grand theft, a fourth-degree felony. On May 1, a manager of a manufacturing plant in the 100 block of Lockwood Ave., Milan, called police to file a theft report. The manager told officers that Hess, a former employee, had entered the facility after being warned multiple times that he was not allowed in the building, according to a Milan police report. He also said that multiple items of company property were missing. According to the manager, Hess was suspended in February pending an internal investigation. After he was fired, the company hired movers to return Hess' personal property left at the plant. Hess, was purportedly concerned about computer hard drives that he did not receive. On the morning of May 1, an employee entered his office and noticed items were disturbed. After looking around, he discovered that the hard drives were missing, according to the report. The company was preparing to scan files on the drives to ensure they did not contain trade secrets. This prompted a review of security camera footage. "An individual (later identified as Hess) was seen entering the building (empty handed) through an unsecured door and navigating through the halls before entering several offices," the report states. "Hess was seen leaving the building 15 minutes later with a garbage bag (he obtained from the engineer's office) filled with various items." A list of items Hess is alleged to have stolen includes a computer, tools and IT testing devices. The manager provided officers with copies of videos showing the man accessing different parts of the plant, according to the report. He also provided statements from current employees who identified Hess in the videos. When officers interviewed Hess he allegedly told them no one from the company told him he was not allowed on the property after he was fired in March. He also stated he did not go to the property and denied, "that he is the white male in the security video footage entering (the building) empty handed and exiting with items in his possession," the report states. The interviewing officer noticed that during the interview, Hess had a tattoo that looked the same as the man on the video and he was wearing a similar watch to the man on the video, according to the report. Police attempted to arrest Hess with a warrant on May 12, but he was not home. On May 13, he turned himself in at the Milan police station. After the Erie County grand jury issued an indictment against Hess, he was detained at Erie County jail. He has since posted bond. He does not have an attorney listed on his case's docket. It is unknown when his next court appearance is scheduled.