December 1, 2021 3:50 a.m.

Deputies with the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office jailed two men in an alleged criminal mischief incident early Tuesday.

A DCSO report said at 2:00 a.m. 911 received a report of someone possibly running a saw in the area of a business in the 7000 block of Old Highway 99 North, between Winchester and Wilbur. When deputies arrived, they heard the sound of a saw on metal, and located two suspects. The men were muddy from laying on the ground. The report said there was a large box truck with the catalytic converter almost cut off.

59-year old Mark Tidwell of Winston denied any participation in cutting the converter off but allegedly had an assisted opening knife in his pocket, which he is not legally allowed to possess. 27-year old Dylan Fritts of Roseburg reportedly admitted to trying to cut the converter off. Both were arrested and taken into custody.

They were charged with attempting to commit a Class C felony and for possession of burglary tools. Fritts was also held for first-degree criminal mischief. He was detained on $62,500 bail. Tidwell was also charged with being a felon in possession of a restricted weapon. His bail was initially set at $18,750. Tidwell was released later on Tuesday.