Linn County Sheriff’s officials arrested a former comic book restorer on Wednesday on suspicion of stealing thousands of dollars worth of comic books that his customers had sent in for repairs and pocketing advance payments made by the customers.
Michael David DeChellis, 57, of Aumsville is accused of stealing more than $300,000 worth of comic books and restoration fees from at least 20 customers who hired him to repair their valuable, often rare comic books, the Linn County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement Thursday.
The first named victim of DeChellis’ alleged crime spree lost $10,000 worth of comic books to DeChellis in March 2023, court records show.
The sheriff’s office began investigating in February of this year after a customer of DeChellis’ now-closed shop, Hero Restoration, complained that DeChellis had not returned a $62,000 comic book he had sent in for restoration, sheriff’s officials said. DeChellis had also charged the victim $5,000 in restoration fees, which he did not refund.
The sheriff’s office found 19 other victims who reported the loss of valuable comic books and fraudulent restoration fees to DeChellis, officials said.
When investigators dug deeper, they found that DeChellis had resold some of the stolen comics online and to another comic book store in Washington, sheriff’s officials said.
When officers arrested DeChellis at his home earlier this week, they also executed a warrant to search his house – and found several comic books inside as well as evidence of the thefts, officers said.
DeChellis is charged with seven counts of first-degree grand larceny and five counts of first-degree larceny.
— Tatum Todd covers crime and public safety. Reach him at [email protected] or 503-221-4313.
