RUTLAND, Vt. (NEWS10) — Vermont State Police have announced they recovered a stolen patrol rifle that was taken Tuesday. Timothy Gabriel was arrested Thursday in connection to both the patrol rifle and a cop car being stolen.

Vermont State Police Police say a cop car was stolen outside of a Rutland City home between 2 and 4:40 a.m. on Tuesday. The cruiser was located elsewhere in the city, but a patrol rifle was missing from the car.

Around 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Vermont State Police found Gabriel walking on Cherry Street in Burlington. Police say he ignored commands directing him to surrender and was subdued by troopers. At the time, the patrol rifle wasn’t accounted for.

Police say the rifle was found abandoned in a pull-off in the vicinity of Exit 3 in Arlington, Vermont. Vermont State Police say uniformed officers are assigned take-home cruisers with secure storage racks inside for police-issued firearms. Anytime a cruiser is left unattended, it must be locked with the windows secured.

Police, at this time, are unable to determine whether the car was locked when it was parked in an overnight parking lot in sight of the assigned officer’s residence. Police say a key to the cruiser, a fully marked 2021 Ford SUV, had been left inside the vehicle. The ignition was not damaged and does not appear to have been bypassed. 

Police say the car was abandoned outside Belden’s Construction in Rutland City, where an employee found the SUV and alerted state police around 7 a.m. Police say the officer assigned the patrol car’s status is unchanged, and the investigation is ongoing.