On Tuesday, deputies were told that an excavator stolen out of Wabash County that same morning could possibly be at a residence in the 20000 block of 14B Road in Culver.

When deputies arrived to the area, they saw a pickup truck leaving the residence and pulling a trailer with an excavator on it, reports said.

While the vehicle was stopped, deputies could determine it was the stolen excavator.

The driver of the vehicle, 25-year-old Jose Arciniega of Hammond, and a passenger, 33-year-old Virgil Tharp of Gary, were taken into custody for being in possession of stolen property.

After recovering the excavator, detectives searched the home on 14B Road.

There, they discovered 48-year-old Jamie Nitcher of Culver, whose pickup truck and trailer were used to steal the excavator, deputies said.

Nitcher was taken into custody for being in possession of stolen property being valued in excess of $50,000.

Another person in the vehicle, 30-year-old Brian Coleman of Gary, was found to have active warrants in Lake and Porter counties.