Former NASCAR driver Dave Marcis had his North Carolina home burglarized while he was out of town, with thieves allegedly making off with racing memorabilia, firearms, jewelry and other valuable possessions.
Marcis, 85, was away in his home state of Wisconsin when his Arden residence was broken into on Aug. 28, according to authorities and a longtime friend.
The Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office said deputies responded to the home that day after receiving a report of a residential break-in.
Investigators said “personal and irreplaceable” items were stolen.
An incident report filed the following day described the stolen property as “high $ items only,” although authorities did not initially specify exactly what had been taken.
Johnny Ponder, who described himself as a close friend of Marcis, later said the stolen property included NASCAR memorabilia, guns, jewelry and other personal valuables.
Ponder said some of the racing items were especially meaningful, including knives honoring past Winston Cup championship drivers.
He also said at least one of the stolen firearms was engraved, making it particularly distinctive.
The Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office later worked with the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office to identify and arrest two people in connection with the burglary.
Hailey Bowlin was arrested Sept. 2 on a probation violation.
State records showed she had been on probation following a previous conviction for possession of stolen goods.
The next day, Bowlin was hit with several additional charges, including second-degree burglary, possession of a firearm by a felon, larceny of a firearm and larceny after breaking and entering.
She was also charged with five counts of obtaining property by false pretenses.
Arrest warrants reportedly link Bowlin to the theft of firearms from Marcis’ home.
A second suspect, Cameron Samotis, was charged with second-degree burglary Sept. 8 and arrested the following day in Henderson County.
Both suspects were being held at the Henderson County Detention Center.
It was not immediately clear whether either had hired an attorney.
Authorities later announced that a majority of the stolen items had been recovered.
Marcis has made only limited public comments about the burglary through a Facebook account managed by his daughter.
The account shared Ponder’s post and said some of the missing property had already been found, with hopes that additional items would eventually be recovered.
One major break reportedly came after a man heard about the burglary and contacted Marcis’ family.
According to the Facebook post, the man said he had unknowingly purchased several of the stolen guns at a local flea market.
Marcis’ family said spreading the word online helped generate information that was useful in recovering the property.
Marcis is a longtime NASCAR veteran who competed for decades at the sport’s highest level and became one of racing’s most recognizable independent drivers.
Beat em and give em life in jail.