By David Eck
Enquirer contributor

FRANKLIN - Police in two Warren County communities are searching for a man who may have posed as a Warren County fire chief and as a firefighter to steal a custom-made light bar and a $2,200 computer system.

Stuart Jude Regan, 36, has been charged with felony forgery and misdemeanor counts of theft and personating an officer in the alleged theft of the light bar from a Franklin welding company. The light bar was valued at $460.

Authorities in Mason also think Mr. Regan may have stolen the computer system from a computer company there. No charges have been filed in that theft.

In both cases, fake purchase orders from Harlan Township Fire & Rescue were used to obtain the merchandise, police said. The thefts were discovered after business owners called the Harlan Township department to check on payment.

"He gave (the business) a purchase order claiming to be the chief of the Harlan Township Fire Department," Franklin Police Lt. Gerry Massey said.

The suspect called the Franklin welding company one morning asking if he could get a custom light bar made that day. He picked up the light bar that evening.

"This guy, he just went right by the numbers," said Dave Miracle, whose Miracle Welding made the light bar. "He'd used his computer printer to generate a lot of forms and information that would create the image of who he said he was. He looked the part, and he talked the part."

Nothing appeared suspicious, he said.

"He was buying something that you would use at the fire department," Mr. Miracle said. "Everything fit."

It wasn't until his bill came back that Mr. Miracle knew something was wrong.

In the Mason incident, the man represented himself as a Harlan Township firefighter - not the chief, police said - and left the store with the computer system after giving the store owner a fake purchase order that appeared to come from the Harlan Township department.

Mr. Regan has served time in Ohio prisons for theft, attempted theft, receiving stolen property and forgery, prison records show.

Sheila McLaughlin contributed to this report.

E-mail daveck@fuse.net