Pottstown Police Arrest Man In Connection With Residential Burglary Spree

Location of Pottstown in Montgomery County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

POTTSTOWN — Borough police arrested one man in connection with a string of residential burglaries on the east side of town in the last two months.

Timothy Buckner, 27, of Pottstown, has been charged with felony burglary, criminal trespass and other related charges, according to court documents.

The crime spree began on March 25 with a residential burglary reported in the 70 block of South Price Street.

According to court documents, Buckner took sterling silver jewelry, some gold jewelry, a Tiffany bracelet, a gold wedding band, a Kindle Fire and a Nexus Tablet 7.  The total amount for these items is around $3,000.

Read more:  http://www.pottsmerc.com/article/20130501/NEWS01/130509911/pottstown-police-arrest-man-in-connection-with-residential-burglary-spree#full_story

Cumru Township Police Probe Major Copper Theft

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Editor’s note:  Wouldn’t it be easier to just get an honest job?  Crime doesn’t pay!

Cumru Township police are searching for a sophisticated burglar or burglars who stole several thousand dollars’ worth of copper wire from an industrial site in what officials are calling one of the biggest copper thefts in recent memory.

Police said Tuesday that between March 27 and Saturday someone broke into the former Northeast Building Systems, 5 E. Pointe Drive, which is undergoing renovations and had been unoccupied for the previous two weeks. The building’s alarm system was temporarily offline because of the renovations.

Read more:  http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=467575

Police: $25K In Copper Has Been Stolen From Former Bethlehem Steel Headquarters

A man charged with six burglaries in Bethlehem’s Martin Tower told investigators he was only “exploring” the vacant building, but he was in fact stealing copper, police say.

Repeated thefts of copper from the former headquarters of Bethlehem Steel led to the installation of video and audio recording devices throughout the 21-story building, court records state.

Investigators said those recordings show Erik Michael Hotton, 27, in the building stealing copper, according to an arrest affidavit.  Police say an estimated $25,000 worth of copper has been stolen over the past six weeks.

Hotton, of 927 Tilghman St. in Allentown, is charged with burglary, conspiracy to commit burglary, theft and receiving stolen property.  He was sent to Lehigh County Prison under $75,000 bail.

Read more:  http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-c-bethlehem-copper-thefts-martin-towners-20121127,0,760997.story

Police: Drunken Scranton Man Raids Stranger’s Refrigerator

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Lackawanna County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Steven Johnson had everything in place for a late-night surf and turf snack and a nightcap early Thursday morning: steak cooling on the stove, clams and shrimp in the refrigerator and bottles of coconut rum and vanilla vodka chilling in the freezer.

The 24-year-old does not live at the 339 William St. home, but his snacking did not seem to bother the couple fast asleep on the living room couch.

So, on his way out, Mr. Johnson made himself a to-go bag.

Just as Mr. Johnson walked out of the kitchen, the man on the couch, Phillip Schwartz, woke up and watched him head out the door and called the police, according to a criminal complaint filed by city police Officer Melissa Forsette.

Read more: http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/police-drunken-scranton-man-raids-stranger-s-refrigerator-1.1400735

2 Caught Stealing Game Commission Wire In Berks, Police Say

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Two men had carted four large rolls of wire to a vehicle at the Port Clinton Fire Tower in eastern Berks County on Thursday when state police arrived and arrested them, police said.

Edward M. Matalavage, 36, of New Ringgold and Rayan M. Navitsky, 34, of Tamaqua were charged with burglary for allegedly breaking into a building and stealing the government-owned wire.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-p-berks-fire-tower-wire-burglary-20121013,0,480612.story

2010 Crime Stats Released For Berks County And Reading

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The 2010 crime statistics for Berks County and the City of Reading have been released.  The stats show a drop in violent crime but a rise in property crimes (probably due in part to the recession).  The city and county also showed a decrease in the overall number of crimes reported.

The report is a mixed bag of news as violent crime is on the rise in Berks county but decreasing in the City of Reading.  To read the article from the Reading Eagle, click here: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=336977

More Stupid Criminal News From New Jersey!

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Ya gotta love these losers!  This is a media release, LOL!

On August 22, 2011 at approximately 12:08 P.M., the Washington Township Ambulance Squad was dispatched to the area of Fox Hollow Lane, Sewell, NJ for a subject who reported that he ran into a mailbox while jogging. The subject was transported to Cooper Hospital in Camden, New Jersey for broken ribs and a punctured lung. It was later learned that the suspect was actually injured while attempting to break into a residence on Fox Hollow Lane. The subject had apparently climbed up onto a second floor deck to attempt to gain entry into a sliding glass door. After failing to gain entry the suspect was attempting to climb down from the deck when the railing he was holding onto broke. The suspect then fell from the deck onto trash cans below where he sustained his injuries. The suspect then ran from the scene and told a neighbor nearby that he was injured after running into a mailbox while jogging.

As a result of a follow-up investigation by Det. Martin Calvello of the Washington Township Police Department Investigative Division the 20-year-old suspect from Gloucester City, New Jersey was charged with Attempted Burglary to the residence on Fox Hollow Lane. This investigation is currently on-going and the suspect’s name is being withheld at this time.

What about getting a JOB!

More Copper Thieves In Scranton

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There is no substitute for hard work and common sense.  Some people try to take the easy way out by resorting to crime for a big payday.

Two men were apprehended by Scranton police after burglarizing several homes in the Hill Section of the city.  Police could see copper sticking out of a backpack in the car and were obtaining a search warrant.  The two men tried to elude police on foot but were captured in short order.

Two homes were burglarized and a third had the front door kicked in but the perpetrators left the scene before taking anything.

Verizon Loses $300,000 To Copper Thieves In Fayette County, Pennsylvania

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A sign of rough economic times is people breaking the law to get money.  Usually, things like shoplifting, armed robbery and burglary are the most common.  However, some clever criminals in Fayette County are stealing telephone line to strip the copper wire out and sell it. 

We had a copper thief here in Pottstown.  They were stealing copper rain gutters off churches, of all things, and selling it.  They were  fortunately apprehended.

In Fayette County, 35 thefts of telephone line have occurred since April.  Since October, 19 of these thefts have occurred.  Guess somebody needs some Christmas cash?

Verizon is offering up to $50,000 in rewards for information leading to an arrest. The downside is, in addition to Verizon being out money, Verizon customers are losing their phone service. 

Fayette County is mostly rural and located south of Pittsburgh.  The county shares its southern border with West Virginia.  The county seat and largest city is Uniontown.

Camden New Jersey Falls To Second Place On FBI’s Most Dangerous Cities List

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St. Louis, MO replaces Camden, NJ as America’s most dangerous city in 2010 according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).  The ranking is based on murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, and motor vehicle theft.

Other cities in the top 25 include Detroit, MI (3),  Oakland, CA (5), Compton, CA (8), New Orleans, LA (13), Washington, DC (22) and Atlanta, GA (25).  No Pennsylvania cities were included in the top 25.