Ariah Nacole Abbott, 21, of Kalamazoo, Michigan, and Jacrel Zaki Dodson, 21, also of Kalamazoo, were identified by store employees in connection with an alleged theft at Dick’s Sporting Goods in Valparaiso on October 19, 2026.

According to court documents, an officer was dispatched to the store at about 1:03 p.m. after a caller reported that two people had left with a large quantity of merchandise and entered a black Jeep. Employees provided police with cellphone video and store surveillance footage. The video showed a man wearing black sweatpants, a black sweatshirt and a black ski mask carrying clothing toward the store’s front entrance. It also showed a woman wearing a blue tank top and black pants carrying clothing.

Employees told police the pair entered the store at about 1 p.m. and went to the Nike Tech clothing section, where they gathered a large quantity of merchandise. An employee said Dodson dropped some of the clothing to force open the front door, which the affidavit described as not designed to open from inside the store. The affidavit says Dodson then picked up the clothing, and both left without paying at about 1:02 p.m.

The merchandise was reported to include Nike full-zip clothing, joggers and shorts, with a total value of $5,382.10. An employee told police that as the two approached the black Jeep, Abbott opened the rear driver-side door and placed the clothing in the back before taking the driver’s seat.

A separate affidavit describes the attempted traffic stop that followed. At about 1:05 p.m., a Porter County sheriff’s officer attempted to stop the black Jeep near State Road 49 and U.S. 6. Abbott, identified in the affidavit as the driver, did not stop. The Jeep traveled east on U.S. 6, made a U-turn and continued north on State Road 49. The affidavit says the vehicle reached 117 mph during the pursuit.

Another officer joined the pursuit near State Road 49 and 1100 North. It ended near State Road 49 and Porter Avenue, where an officer used a precision immobilization technique to stop the Jeep. Abbott and Dodson were detained, and officers recovered clothing from the vehicle. Employees identified them as the people shown in the store footage.

Both suspects are lodged in the Porter County Jail.

Charges filed October 20, 2026:

Ariah Nacole Abbott

Theft of property valued between $750 and $50,000 — Level 6 felony

Resisting law enforcement while using a vehicle — Level 6 felony

Jacrel Zaki Dodson

Theft of property valued between $750 and $50,000 — Level 6 felony