Wisconsin
Teens break into Wisconsin car dealership, steal $500,000 in luxury vehicles
Startling surveillance footage captured the moment a band of teens from the Chicago area broke into a Wisconsin Jaguar/Land Rover dealership and sped off with more than half a million dollars worth of high-end vehicles – later leading police on a dramatic 40-mile chase.
In a coordinated heist, several black-clad individuals pulled up to the Waukesha dealership in the early hours of Feb. 18, pried open the key box and got into nine cars, the footage shared by FOX6 News showed.
One of the thieves got into a Land Rover Velar and used the car “as a battering ram” to smash through the garage door, the outlet added, citing the criminal complaint.
The group ultimately made off with an enviable fleet that included a 2019 Porsche Macan, a 2024 Land Rover Discovery Dynamic and a 2021 Jaguar F Type R-Dynamic, FOX6 said.
The total value of the vehicles was $583,339, officials explained.
Eight of the cars belonged to the dealership, and one belonged to a customer.
The dealership operators arrived a few hours after the robbery to find the garage door destroyed and broken glass strewn throughout the parking lot, police said.
The brazen theft led police on a nearly 40-mile chase Sunday morning, which ended when one of the drivers – 17-year-old Calvin Valentine – crashed the 2021 Land Rover-Range Rover Westminster, valued at $73,998, in the West Allis area, according to FOX6.
In an interview with police, Valentine confessed that he was picked up early Sunday in the Chicago area, the outlet noted.
“The defendant stated that his friend gave him a key and he got in the white SUV that he crashed during the pursuit with West Allis. The defendant stated he was just ‘doing kid’s stuff,’” the complaint read.
The teen also claimed that “he did not know what people would do with these cars.”
Valentine is now staring down four criminal charges – including burglary and receiving stolen property –and remains in Waukesha County Jail on $50,000 bond, according to online records.
“We believe this to be an organized crime group of teenagers from the Chicago area,” Waukesha Police Chief Dan Baumann said in a press release.
By mid-week, six of the nine stolen vehicles had been recovered, with four of them found in Chicago, according to WISN12.
The eight other suspects, however, reportedly remain on the loose.
The Waukesha and West Allis Police Departments did not immediately return The Post’s request for a comment on the investigation.
In the wake of the dramatic heist, local officials stressed the importance of security in preventing further thefts.
“You have to be unbelievably vigilant when business closes, that you account for all keys and make sure they are all in a secure lock box,” Jim Tolkan, president of the Auto Dealers Association of Mega Milwaukee, told FOX6.
“Having on-site security after closing, whether it be every night, make sure all the keys are locked in lock boxes. [The] cost involved is significantly less than what’s going to happen if you have seven, four, five, 10 vehicles stolen,” he added.
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde reflects on early March Madness exit
Wisconsin guard Andrew Rohde said the Badgers ‘thought we could do so many things’ in the NCAA Tournament before it ended abrupty with an upset loss.
Wisconsin men’s basketball has added a sharpshooting wing via the transfer portal.
Miami (Ohio) transfer Eian Elmer has signed with the Badgers, the team announced April 18. The 6-foot-7 wing will join UW with one year of eligibility remaining.
Elmer averaged a career-high 12.7 points and 5.9 rebounds while shooting 49.8% from the field and 42.9% from 3-point range in 2025-26. His production helped the RedHawks go 32-2 and earn an at-large NCAA Tournament bid.
“We are really excited to add another excellent addition to our spring signees,” UW coach Greg Gard said in a release. “Eian brings a wealth of experience and scoring punch as a 6-7 wing. … A terrific shooter, his skillset and production fit excellently into our plan as we build out next year’s team. Throughout our evaluation process, our staff loved his size, power and skill and truly believe he will thrive in our system.”
Elmer is Wisconsin’s third transfer portal addition since the end of the 2025-26 season, joining former George Washington guard Trey Autry and former Hofstra forward Victory Onuetu. UW also added Australian guard Owen Foxwell.
The additions of Autry, Onuetu and now Elmer leave Gard’s staff with three more roster spots to fill ahead of the 2026-27 season.
The Badgers are looking to replace much of their production from a 2025-26 team that went 24-11. Nolan Winter is expected to be the team’s only returning starter after John Blackwell and Aleksas Bieliauskas entered the transfer portal and Nick Boyd and Andrew Rohde exhausted their eligibility.
MILWAUKEE – Friday’s severe storms have passed. And with that, the threat of any severe weather has also passed for the immediate future as no storms or rain are expected for several days.
However, plenty of damage remains across southeastern Wisconsin as of Saturday morning, in addition to the ongoing flooding threat.
Several area rivers are at flood stage, and there are multiple river flood warnings in effect.
FOX6 Weekend WakeUp on Saturday begins at 6 a.m.
On the scene in the morning
What we know:
Farmstead damage in Franklin
FOX6’s Hayley Spitler is in Franklin on Saturday morning, April 18, getting a daylight look at the damage from last night’s storms.
Storm damage in Caledonia
Friday’s storms left quite the mark across southern and southeastern Wisconsin, including at L and L Farms and Greenhouse in Caledonia.
FOX6 Weather Extras
Local perspective:
Meanwhile, FOX6Now.com offers a variety of extremely useful weather tools to help you navigate the stormy season. They include the following:
FOX6 Storm Center app
FOX LOCAL Mobile app
FOX Weather app
Maps and radar
We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.
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School and business closings
When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.
FOX6 Weather Experts in social media
The Source: Information in this post was compiled by the FOX6 Weather Experts.
How Aleksas Bieliauskas has grown in first season with Wisconsin Badgers
Wisconsin coach Greg Gard has high praise for Aleksas Bieliauskas about a month into the Lithuania native’s freshman season.
MADISON – One of Wisconsin men’s basketball’s departing transfers is headed to an SEC program with some connections to the Badgers.
Ex-UW forward Aleksas Bieliauskas has committed to South Carolina, he announced on April 17.
Bieliauskas left the Badgers after appearing in all 35 games as a freshman and making 28 starts. He averaged 4.9 points and 4.4 points in 20.2 minutes, and highlights of his freshman year included his five 3-pointers in UW’s upset over eventual national champion Michigan.
He’ll join a program with plenty of Wisconsin ties. South Carolina head coach Lamont Paris was an assistant coach at Wisconsin from 2010-17 on Bo Ryan and Greg Gard’s staffs. South Carolina assistant coach Tanner Bronson and director of video services Roman DiPasquale also are UW alumni.
Bieliauskas is the second of UW’s four departing transfers to commit to a new school. Reserve forward Jack Robison committed to North Dakota State on April 15. Starting guard John Blackwell and reserve forward Riccardo Greppi have not announced their next schools yet.
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