The man charged with stealing a DeWitt Police cruiser is going to be back in court Thursday.
The mother of the suspected getaway driver gave new details to FOX 47 News.
Lisa Lauer claims her son got roped in with some bad people.
"This is the first time he's been in trouble, so I was really shocked when I found out it was my son," she said.
Lauer says her son was not close friends with Timothy Vanous who has also been charged.
"[Josh] brought his friend around and he brought his cousin around the day that Josh was there and it was like two days I seen the guy," said Lauer.
The morning of February 20, a DeWitt Township Police officer was patrolling the Meijer parking lot when he saw a man stealing a TV.
"The deal was that they were going to drop the guy off at Meijer so he could get groceries, but I guess he came running out of the store with a TV and threw it in the back of the car and started beating on the back of Josh's seat and said, 'go, go go!' and Josh just panicked and went," said Lauer.
Josh Lauer was later arrested in Lansing.
He's being held on a $25,000 bond.
"He's probably looking at time, and he just had a brand new baby boy. Who knows when he'll get to see him again," said Lauer.
Vanous was found on Turner Road.
In body cam video from DeWitt City Police, you can hear Vanous deny taking the TV before he struggles with officers and steals the patrol car.
Vanous led police on a chase through downtown and South Lansing running several red lights.
He eventually crashed the cruiser at the end of Edison Avenue and was arrested.
Lauer has been bound over to Clinton County Circuit Court where he will have a hearing on March 25.
Vanous has a probable cause hearing in district court Thursday afternoon.
