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Stolen company vehicle found; owner credits social media, police, with recovery

Posted at 1:14 PM, Oct 26, 2017
and last updated 2017-10-26 18:50:00-04

PORTSMOUTH, Va.  - A company car stolen over the weekend has been recovered.

Michael Knox, owner of MNX Unlimited Inc. in Portsmouth, says his car was stolen between Saturday night and Sunday morning. He first reported it to police, then took to Facebook.

The company Facebook page has nearly 3,000 followers. Hopeful that someone would know something, he posted pictures of the car, which is wrapped in the company's logo, online. Shortly after the post, people began commenting that they had seen the car.

Knox says police began monitoring the stream of comments, and encouraged him to keep sharing the post.

According to Knox, on Monday police spotted the car driving near Airline Boulevard. Police say the car tried to get away from them, taking police on a six minute chase around the city. Knox says the car even drove through an auto repair shop, and crashed through a fence.

Workers at Culpepper Radiator Services confirmed seeing the chase play out on their property. They say they are just happy no one was out in the parking lot because the driver was speeding through the area.

Portsmouth Police say after the chase, the driver got out and tried to flee from police. They were eventually able to capture the driver and a passenger, both are juveniles.

Knox says there is damage to frame of his car but he is grateful  that no one was injured in the chase and to have the car back in one piece. He says the recovery of the car would not be possible if it wasn't for the help of the community and Portsmouth Police.