Kankakee man arrested for alleged car thefts

Officers from the Tri-County Auto Theft Task Force and the Kankakee City Police department have made an arrest they believe solves a sting of car thefts in the City. In a press release, agents of the Task Force and City Police say it was about 10 Monday morning when they arrested 20-year-old Ethan J. Smith of Kankakee for possession of a stolen motor vehicle. At the time, Smith was driving a 2012 Chevy pick-up truck that had been reported stolen earlier in the morning. During the investigation it was determined Smith was also a suspect in the theft of five different vehicles that were stolen between Monday and Saturday of last week. Smith was also suspected of breaking into a car in the City Monday. Smith was taken to the Jerome Combs Detention Center, booked on varying charges connected to the missing vehicles.