The Chatham-Kent police have arrested a man and woman in connection with multiple break and enters in Chatham.
Between August 2011 and June 2014, police identified numerous residential break and enters where a number of ‘blocked’ or ‘private’ phone calls were made to the victimized residences up to, and including, the time the residence was broken into. Jewelry, cash, collector coins and electronics were the items primarily targeted by the suspect(s).
Following a lengthy investigation, police arrested the man and his wife.
Michael BROWN, 38 years, of Balmoral Road in Chatham has been charged with:
– Break & Enter and Commit Theft x30
– Break & Enter with Intent to Commit Theft x2
– Possession of Property Obtained by a Crime x18
Jodie-Lynn BROWN, 36 years, of Balmoral Road in Chatham has been charged with:
– Break & Enter and Commit Theft x29
– Break & Enter with Intent to Commit Theft x2
– Possession of Property Obtained by a Crime x18
They have both been released pending a future court date of November 4, 2014.
Police estimate that over the past three years, in excess of $600,000 in property has been stolen from victims’ homes. Not included in this amount is the cost of damages caused to the homes when entry was forced, the cost of rising insurance premiums after claims were made, or the installation, maintenance and monitoring of alarm systems most victims had installed in an attempt to regain some sense of security in their own home. Also not included are the stolen family heirlooms that had been passed down through generations and cannot be replaced by any kind of monetary repayment.
The investigation was a co-operative effort led by the Intelligence Unit with the assistance of Community Patrol Branch, Criminal Investigations Branch, Forensic Identification Unit and Crime Stoppers.
“The arrest of these prolific offenders demonstrates that small groups or individual career criminals are responsible for the vast majority of break-ins that occur in our community†says Chief Dennis Poole. “We are very pleased to have brought this lengthy investigation to a successful conclusion, and I commend the officers involved for their determination in pursuing these offenders and bringing them before the Courts. Our concentrated efforts on monitoring chronic offenders, and the increasing engagement and awareness of citizens to report suspicious activities and participate in preventative efforts to reduce opportunities for criminals have combined to help reduce our rate of break-ins in the community over the past two years, which is meeting the objectives of our Business Plan and our Mission in making Chatham-Kent the safest community in Ontario. Knowing that these individuals have been arrested will hopefully allow some of these victims to regain their lost sense of security and serve notice on the criminal element that we will continue in our efforts to pursue them relentlessly to keep our community safe.â€