Rash of thefts reported

Vehicles, property stolen from several neighborhoods

Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2009

According to a Calvert County Sheriff's Office press release, the Huntingtown area continues to be inundated with thefts from vehicles and, on three occasions, vehicles with the keys left inside were stolen. These three vehicles were later found abandoned within the county. The culprits have been stealing mostly electronics (GPS's and cameras) and also tools and money from vehicles. Most of the vehicles were unlocked and had been parked in residential neighborhoods.

A resident whose van was broken into on Stephen Reid Road on Oct. 27 said that two van windows were broken and, within an hour and a half, about five or six cars were broken into on her road and Grace Road. She said the van's break-in was between 6:50 and 7:10 a.m., but said another vehicle about 25 yards away was broken into while her husband was waiting outside for the police.

It was "smash, grab, leave," she said, but although several neighbors lost expensive items, only her van's console was stolen.

"It was just really strange," she said of the stolen console, which was the size of a Galapagos turtle shell. However, one not-so-lucky neighbor had a laptop and a camera stolen from his vehicle, she added.

"They're even taking things like spare change," said Lt. Steven Jones of the Calvert Investigative Team. The CIT believes that some of the stolen vehicles are being used to commit other vehicle break-ins and thefts and then abandoned, he said.

On Oct. 29 an unlocked 2001 BMW parked in a driveway on Limerick Lane in Owings was stolen with a purse and laptop computer inside. The vehicle is valued at $8,000 and the contents were valued at $1,200. And sometime between Oct. 28 and 29, someone entered an unlocked vehicle parked outside a home on Patuxent Court in Dunkirk and stole a purse containing cash and gift cards, according to a sheriff's office report.

Jones urges people to take their keys out of their cars, lock the vehicles and take out or hide valuables.

"It's a shame we have to live like this," Jones said, adding, it's not like the old Calvert County.

At this time, there are no known suspects; however, on Oct. 16 at 12:48 a.m., a local Huntingtown business had video surveillance of two possible suspects. These suspects were videotaped going through vehicles on the premises, removing property from said vehicles and putting the property into what appears to be a 1990s Ford model pick-up truck, possibly dark blue or green in color with a tan stripe at the bottom, the press release stated.

Anyone with information regarding any of these crimes is asked to contact Det. Nicholas DeFelice at 410-535-2800, Ext. 2669, or Lt. Steve Jones of the CIT at 410-535-2800, Ext. 2462.

charvat@somdnews.com