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Youngstown cops find burglary cache
Photo
Flat-screen televisions and other electronic goods that were taken from a Ravine Road home Tuesday sit in storage at the Youngstown Police Department.
BY JOE GORMAN
jgorman@vindy.com
YOUNGSTOWN
Police say a small, one-story house on Ravine Road was stuffed with stolen goods.
Detectives served a search warrant at the 1507 Ravine Road home Tuesday afternoon as part of an investigation into a series of burglaries in the Forest View and Bennington Avenue areas of the East Side, and they apparently hit the mother lode.
Lead investigator Detective Sgt. Carl Davis said the stash inside is the largest he has seen in his 27 years with the department.
He said there were tire rims, electronics and flat- screen televisions.
One truck load of stolen rims was carted away, and investigators were waiting on another truck as the afternoon progressed.
A group of neighbors at a home next door watched intently as detectives and crime-lab personnel took pictures and carried evidence outside to be stored and logged at the police station.
Davis said no arrests have been made yet, but there are suspects.
The homeowner was home when detectives served the warrant and was cooperative, Davis said.
“We’re still in the early stages of the investigation,” Davis said.
The warrant comes after a new emphasis by police Chief Rod Foley on property crimes.
Foley said last week he was concerned about a surge of burglaries in
August and he was meeting with investigators to come up with new ways to try and solve property crimes, especially with a lull in the city’s homicide rate.
Davis said detectives got a big break when a nearby neighbor noticed something unusual and called police.
“This is a perfect example of what happens when neighbors assist us,” Davis said.
Davis said the burglars would enter homes by breaking in windows or doors, and a lot of times they would knock air conditioners out of window frames to get inside.
The burglars are also suspected in several thefts of rims from cars. He said he has one case where someone took some rims off a car and left it up on blocks while the car was parked on the street.
He said he could not explain why so many of the stolen goods were inside the house. He said typically, thieves try to get rid of stolen goods quickly.
“This is the most I’ve ever seen as a police officer,” Davis said.
Foley said police had posted fliers in recent days warning of burglaries and telling residents how to report burglaries or other suspicious activity.
He said investigators received their crucial tip sometime within the last two days, which allowed Davis to get the information he needed to apply for the search warrant.
Crimestoppers also provided help as well, Foley said.
Davis said if anyone has serial numbers from things that they had stolen to contact the Detective Division at 330-742-8911.