Joseph Edward Romano, 47, of Merrillville, faces felony charges after police say surveillance footage captured him breaking into a secured construction site on two separate occasions and later selling the stolen steel at a scrap yard in Gary.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Hammond Police responded to two reported burglaries at a commercial construction site in the 3500 block of 169th Street. The construction property manager for National Shopping Plaza told investigators the site was surrounded by a six-foot chain link fence with a locked gate secured by a chain and padlock.
Surveillance video shows that on January 24, 2026, at approximately 3:20 p.m., a white van pulled up to the property. Someone disassembled part of the fence where two panels connect and removed bundles of metal wall studs valued at more than $200.
Footage from February 3, 2026, at approximately 4:05 p.m., shows the same white van returning. The fence was again taken apart, and large steel pipes valued at more than $3,000 were removed. The van left about seven minutes later while towing a trailer loaded with the stolen materials. The manager told police the fence and gate were locked before both incidents and that no one had permission to enter the property.
Investigators reviewed surveillance from the construction site, nearby license plate readers, and a Gary scrap yard. They identified the van as a 2008 Ford Econoline E250 displaying an Indiana plate that was registered to a different vehicle.
A Lake County police officer had previously located the same van on January 23, 2026, improperly parked at a Merrillville motel with the false plate attached. The driver identified himself as Joseph Edward Romano and told officers he had recently purchased the van but did not have the money to register it properly.
Police also determined the same van had been flagged in prior theft investigations in Munster on December 30, 2025, and in Highland on January 5, 2026.
Surveillance footage from the Gary scrap yard shows the van arriving on February 3, 2026, at 4:17 p.m., towing a trailer. Video shows 198 pounds of steel being unloaded, and Romano receiving $198 in cash.
Romano was lodged in the Lake County Jail on February 7, 2026.
Charges filed February 6, 2026:
• Burglary — Level 5 Felony (2 counts)