COURT DOCS: Garrett Common Councilman and family arrested in connection to coffee house crime
Mar 14, 2025
DEKALB COUNTY, Ind. (WANE) -- A Garrett Common Councilman, his wife, and his son are charged with theft after allegedly stealing an espresso machine from a local coffee shop and beginning their own drive-up coffee shop.
66-year-old Bobby Diederich, 62-year-old Julie Diederich and 37-year-old Ryan
Diederich all face charges of theft, a Level 6 Felony and Obstruction of Justice, a Level 6 Felony. This is in connection to the alleged theft of an espresso machine, a coffee grinder, and other items from the Grind, a Mobile Coffee trailer.
66 year old Bobby Diederich
37 year old Ryan Diederich
62 year old Julie Diederich
Bobby Diederich, currently sits in the at large seat on Garrett Common Council.
According to court documents provided by the DeKalb Superior Court, on Feb. 10 detectives with DeKalb County began investigating following a theft that occurred in July at the Grind. The owner of the Grind, Kayla Wegman, spoke with detectives and informed them that she reported to the theft to the Garrett Police Department when it happened, but felt the department did not "truly investigate anything," according to court documents.
According to court documents, the theft originally happened between the dates of July 19 to July 24, while Wegman was out of town. Wegman said two specific items were stolen, the black Fiorenzato espresso coffee grinder and a black and silver Nuova Simonelli espresso machine. According to court documents, all together, the items were valued at over $6,000. Court documents also indicated that other items taken from the shop were recipe cards, cash from the register, and a safety deposit box.
Wegman told detectives that she has owned her machine for over six years, and stated that her machine would be distinct for the year it was manufactured. Wegman also told detectives, according to court documents, that she believed her ex-husband, Ryan Diederich and his family were involved in the burglary.
Detectives revealed in the court documents that the camera system at the coffee shop was turned off during the time frame of the crime, but Wegman said only a few people had access to the camera system, including both Ryan and Bobby Diederich, according to court documents.
Detectives later met with one of those who had access to the camera system according to court documents. In the conversation with detectives, the individual revealed that they had met with Bobby to review video footage of the incident. According to court documents, Bobby was the only one to have the exact login information.
In the meeting with Bobby, the individual stated that Bobby would not allow him access to further review the video, to see who was last seen by the cameras on the property. According to court documents, Bobby stated during the meeting with the individual that, "he is on the Council of Garrett and will do what he wants as he is known in the town and his name is on the building." Court documents also said Bobby stated that "if he needs to make something happen he can make it happen."
On Feb. 12, detectives went through the Coffee Cabin drive-thru, owned by Julie and Bobby Diederich, and noticed what was believed to be the stolen machine, as it matched the description and photos given by Wegman. Detectives were then able to obtain a search warrant to search for the stolen items at the Coffee Cabin's location.
According to court documents, both Julie and Bobby Diederich arrived while detectives were executing the search warrant. According to court documents, the detective asked both Julie and Bobby to provide the receipt for the espresso machine. Bobby stated that his wife bought the machine and that "he just finances the cost of the business." He then told detectives that he would eventually be able to get the receipt for the machine. The receipt was never given to detectives according to court documents.
The espresso machine was seized during the search and Wegman was able to immediately identify the machine. The machine was also matched through the serial number located on the bottom of the machine, according to court documents.
All three were arrested and booked into the DeKalb County Jail Friday.
As of the date of publication, an initial hearing date has yet to be announced. ...read more read less