From the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department
On October 3, 2021, approximately 5: a.m., Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Deputy Sergeant Gary Knoef, responded to a 911 call in the area of 700N/425E near Hope.
On arrival, Sgt. Knoef located a vehicle that had substantial front-end damage and a broken REMC utility pole just west of the intersection.
Although no one was in the vehicle, Sgt. Knoef received information that the driver was at a nearby residence. Eventually, contact was made with Joshua Walter Marsh, 24, Shelbyville.
Marsh said he was a passenger in the vehicle and had no idea where the driver was. Following an extensive physical search of the area and the use of a CFD drone brought to the scene in an attempt to locate the missing and suspected injured, driver, Marsh admitted he was the driver.
Due to Marsh’s false statements and the possibility of another injured person in the area, an unnecessary amount of time and resources were dedicated to this incident.
Marsh was arrested on preliminary charges involving allegations of:
False informing
Operating a motor vehicle while under the influence
He has since been released.
Primary Deputy: Sergeant Gary Knoef
Assisting Deputies: Sergeant Andrew Dougan, Deputy Anthony Bagby
Other agencies on scene: Columbus Fire Department, Columbus Regional Hospital EMS, Clifford Fire Department, Bartholomew County Emergency Operations Center
Bartholomew County Sheriff Matthew A. Myers
“Keeping impaired drivers off our streets and roadways is one of our biggest priorities”, said Bartholomew County Sheriff Matthew A. Myers. “When citizens step up and call 911 to report possible impaired drivers, they definitely could be saving a life”, added Myers.
