Man admits stealing car with Lucky the dog inside, but provides no leads

Willard Martz and his dog, Lucky, were nearly inseparable.

Martz, a retired Marine from Donegal Township, had cared for his late son’s dog since 2020, and they were rarely apart until last fall, his daughter told a Westmore­land County judge Monday. She addressed the court during a guilty plea hearing for the man who admitted to stealing her father’s car with Lucky inside and driving off.

“You can’t replace a loved one, and it’s like losing part of your family — and he was part of our family,” Linda Folino said of the Airedale terrier that has been missing for 11 months.

Kenneth Wilson Crider, 44, of Maryland pleaded guilty to charges related to the Sept. 23 carjacking and a related offense in connection with a high-speed police chase a day earlier near the New Stanton exit of the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Authorities said they believed Crider was on the run after having stolen a car in Maryland. He was spotted by local police as he exited the turnpike and evaded officers as they drove through New Stanton and Hempfield and into East Huntingdon before he abandoned his vehicle.

According to police, the next day Crider approached Martz, 87, in the parking lot outside a Tractor Supply farm store in East Huntingdon, demanded his keys and drove off in Martz’s Ford Focus. Martz told police he had left a window open for the dog, who rode with him to the store.

“We just don’t understand why he didn’t just leave (Lucky) out,” Folino said.

She said Crider drove the car about 2,000 miles before he crashed it during another high-speed police chase that ended in North Carolina on Sept. 28. In April, Crider was extradited to Westmoreland County, where he has been in custody.

Crider told police he let Lucky go at a rest stop along Interstate 95 but has not provided specifics, Folino said. A multi-state search of the East Coast, coordinated over social media, produced leads but didn’t turn up the missing canine.

Crider pleaded guilty Monday to charges of robbery and receiving stolen property in connection with the Martz carjacking. He also pleaded guilty to felony counts of fleeing police in Westmoreland County and receiving stolen property related to the chase that police said reached speeds of 116 mph.

Common Pleas Judge Scott Mears ordered Crider to serve two consecutive sentences totaling 14 months to 10 years in prison and an additional two years of probation.

“Lucky and my dad were always in his vehicle together. Rarely did anyone see Dad without Lucky. They were always riding on a golf cart together. Now it’s so disheartening to see Dad and no Lucky on the golf cart,” Folino said.