VBT police investigate possible theft of ATV, drunk driving into lake

On Sunday night [Jan. 7]Van Buren Township Police took a man into custody for what may have been the theft of an ATV from the carousel party on the ice in front of Johnny’s restaurant on Belleville Lake.
The vehicle ended up in Belleville Lake when the driver got too close to a bubbler a homeowner had put out to keep ice away from his dock at the end of North Shore Drive.
The driver was found in a house near where the vehicle sunk in the lake trying to contact a friend to pick him up, according to reports.
On Monday, the VBT Public Safety Department Dive Team and tow trucks worked to get the vehicle out of the water.
VBT Police Lt. Charles Bazzy said a search warrant for the driver’s blood was obtained and police held him for 12 hours. He was released pending blood results.
Lt. Bazzy said police are currently conducting an operating while intoxicated / ATV-theft investigation.
Despite reports that the man may have been armed, Lt. Bazzy said police did not locate a firearm on the individual nor was there any reason to believe he had one in his possession at the time of the incident.
Detective Michael Long has been assigned the case to follow up on.
A person attending the carousel party said a friend who knows the lake well was coming back from Mission Pointe on his ATV, trying to find the stolen ATV, and then located it floating upside down at the end of North Point. There was no one in sight.
He rushed back to Johnny’s to tell them to call 911. They did, and a lot of sirens followed. Police cars, fire trucks, ambulances, and more emergency vehicles arrived.