Justin Preedom

A man is accused of stealing a school bus belonging to a Butler County company and driving it home — about 280 miles away in upstate New York.

The Livingston County Sheriff's Office said they arrested Justin M. Preedom, 30, of Avon after they got a call about 7:35 p.m. Aug. 24 for a “suspicious condition” complaint.

It was reported, authorities said, that a school bus with Pennsylvania license plates was at a home on East Avon-Lima Road and the caller did not know why it was there.

Sheriff's deputies went there and subsequently called the owner of the bus company, W.L. Roenigk Inc., which is based in Buffalo Township.

The owner, according to a Livingston County Sheriff's Office news release issued Thursday, “confirmed that the bus had been stolen and there was no legitimate reason as to why it would be in Avon, N.Y.”

Avon is about 20 miles south of Rochester.

The investigation eventually led to Preedom, authorities said, who allegedly stole the bus so he could return to his home. It was not immediately clear why he was in Pennsylvania.

The suspect was arraigned on a charge of criminal possession of stolen property, which is graded as a second-degree felony because the bus is valued at more than $50,000.