Pine Grove Twp. man charged with burglarizing school property

Yahoo

19-07-2025

A Pine Grove Twp. man faces burglary and criminal trespass charges after police say he stole various pieces of equipment, food and drinks from the Pine Grove Area School District in two drug-induced incidents.
Pine Grove police charged Austin Hall, 28, on Wednesday after they found video surveillance footage of a man removing uniforms and other items from private band trailers and a concession stand on the school property earlier this year.
Police said the man, later identified as Hall, was first spotted the morning of April 7 walking around the school grounds. Surveillance footage showed he had entered two band trailers in a fenced-off area around 3 a.m. that morning. He came out of the trailers wearing an approximately $795 band uniform, police said.
After further investigation, police found Hall had also taken food, medical supplies, tools and a backpack before leaving the area.
On June 23, school district officials notified police that Hall had returned to campus and broken into the concession stand at the football stadium. Footage showed the defendant driving a blue four-wheeler to the area late June 22. Around 12:30 a.m. that night, he was seen walking in front of the garage area at the stadium. He left and returned later, wearing a dress, police said.
Hall changed his clothing several times and then climbed into the concession stand through a window, according to police.
He was seen trying to cover the cameras inside the stand with duct tape; pictures from said cameras showed the defendant's appearance matched that of the person in the April 7 break-in, police said.
Inside the concession stand, Hall took food, drinks and several other items, including medical supplies and towels, police said.
He ultimately left the scene on his four-wheeler around 3:45 a.m., police said, but returned to campus near the elementary school later that morning and washed his vehicle with a hose.
Police subsequently contacted the defendant. Hall told police that he was the person involved in both incidents and said he has a drug issue. He said when he does drugs, he blacks out and doesn't remember what he does, although he did have a good recollection of both incidents, according to police.
Hall said he hid the items from the school district in a wooded area known as the 'Ghost Bridge,' but when he went back for them later, they were no longer there.
Hall faces two felony counts each of burglary and criminal trespass, along with two misdemeanor counts each of theft and receiving stolen property.
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