“BCSO: Callaway thieves caught with stolen gear”

BCSO: Callaway thieves caught with stolen gear

Posted: 11 Oct 2010 05:38 PM PDT

Deputies say the alleged burglars' truck contained:

nearly 30 pairs of sunglasses
fishing gear
gas cans
GPS systems
stereo systems
floor jack
coolers
cash
credit and debit cards

CALLAWAY — Every teenager likes sunglasses, but two teens with nearly 30 pairs in one truck seemed suspicious to local deputies.

The Bay County Sheriff's deputies had been alerted to a suspicious full-size green Chevrolet truck in Callaway on Friday after residents spotted "several individuals leaving the vehicle and going into open garages," officials wrote in a news release.

Deputies pulled over the vehicle and found the purloined merchandise, which included the sunglasses, gas cans, rolled coins, credit and debit cards, coolers, fishing gear GPS, stereo systems and floor jack. Deputies also located a third suspect, a woman, walking through a nearby neighborhood with "a victim's purse on her shoulder."

Stephanie Swearingen, 18, of 3904 E. 14th St. in Springfield; Billy Shaffer, 19, of 2402 Douglas Road in Panama City; and Samuel Hauck, 19, of 722 Joan Lane in Callaway, were charged with loitering and prowling, burglary of an occupied structure and burglary of an unoccupied conveyance.

It's unclear how long the suspects had been committing these burglaries or how many burglaries they are responsible for, sheriff's spokeswoman Ruth Corley said Monday.

Corley encouraged local residents to check their boats, garages and vehicles to make sure nothing had been stolen, as authorities have recovered more items than known victims, she added. Those who believe they may be burglary victims should call the Sheriff's Office at 747-4700 and make a formal complaint, Corley said.

Victims should be able to get their items back, but it will help matters if they know the serial numbers or have a photograph of themselves with the item, Corley said.

"We encourage people to lock up their vehicles and please do close the door to the garage," she added.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.