Man Charged with Theft of Church A/C Units

A Marietta man may have learned this week that stealing air conditioning units from a church might not be the best way to beat the heat. arrested Kittrell Hawthorne, 34, of Marietta on Tuesday on charges of theft and obstruction.

According to police, officers responded at 1:30 a.m. Tuesday to a report of a theft in progress at . When officers arrived, they said they saw a man who had finished loading two air conditioning units into a blue Ford Expedition. The units were valued at more than $10,000.

The man fled in his vehicle, leading to a chase but not an apprehension. After further investigation, detectives identified Hawthorne and recovered the stolen property from the vehicle. They arrested Hawthorne on a felony charge of theft by taking and other charges including fleeing and eluding, obstruction and other traffic offenses. He is being held at the Cobb County Jail with no bond.

Police say there have been numerous other air conditioning thefts in Marietta, but those incidents have not been linked to Hawthorne at this time. Anyone with information about any of the thefts should call Detective Freer at 770-794-4053 or the Tip Line at 770-794-5520.