Man Shot During Burglary Gets Eight Years Behind Bars

SNOW HILL -- Cpl. Katie Edgar pulled into the gravel driveway of Venable's Electric HVAC Inc., responding to call of a burglary in process at the warehouse. She stepped out of her Worcester County Sheriff's patrol car to see a pickup truck headed toward her, backlit by the warehouse lights, its headlights turned off.

With her gun in her right hand and her police dog, Jonka, leashed in her left, she yelled at the driver to turn off the car and get out. Instead, the driver turned on the headlights; he gunned the engine.

What happened next set in motion the events that would lead to the police pursuit and arrest of the truck driver, Matthew Noah Collins, and his eventual trial on charges of assault, burglary and theft.

Circuit Court Judge Dale Cathell sentenced Collins, 28, of Salisbury to eight years in jail, finding him guilty of second-degree assault and fourth-degree burglary. Prosecutors dropped a charge of first-degree assault.

Collins admitted in court on Aug. 18 that he'd gone to the Bishopville warehouse to steal metal that he would later sell for scrap. He was leaving the property with several large air conditioning units packed into his pickup bed when he was caught red-handed.

The junked air conditioning units kept behind that warehouse held valuable copper, aluminum and steel parts. With market prices at the time about $3 a pound, the scrap metal would have been worth between $600-$900, testified company owner Dale Venable.

Edgar stood about six feet from the bumper of Collins' 1983 Ford pickup, yelling for him to get out, when the engine went from idle to racing.

Edgar used her gun in self-defense, firing six times toward the oncoming truck.

"I fired as long as he was a threat to me," she said.

Collins pulled the truck hard to the right and drove off. He had been shot three times: in the upper back, shoulder blades and clean through his left elbow.

Worcester County deputies soon caught up with him, and he pulled over on Route 113 north of Carey Road, where he was arrested.

Judge Cathell said Matthew Collins' criminal history of assault, burglary and shoplifting charges in Maryland and Delaware informed his decision to hand down the maximum allowable prison sentence on the burglary and assault charges.

"It seems like nothing teaches you a lesson. Maybe this will," the judge said.

Source;  http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20110819/NEWS01/108190308/Man-shot-during-burglary-gets-8-years

Arrests Made As Appliances Are Returned

Nancy Drury Duncan

Staff Writer

ACCOMAC -- Two men who apparently tried to take a number of appliances from a used furniture store in Accomack County got more than they bargained for.

The heist ended with the store's owner holding a shotgun on the suspects until police arrived.

Storm Carter, 61, of Keller and Joseph Washington, 35, of Nelsonia, were found guilty of grand larceny in Accomack Circuit Court by Judge A. Bonwill Shockley.

The suspects were seen driving away from behind the store one night last June by store manager Jean Jones, who had dropped by.

She had her children in her car, she said. She said the truck and a flatbed trailer were filled with items belonging to the business, and she followed as it quickly drove away.

She called police and her father, the owner of the business, as she pursued the truck. Finally, the men stopped, walked back to her car and apologized to Jones, saying they would take the items back.

"They did go back," Jones said. "They started throwing thing off the truck and trailer really fast."

The items were described as a large steel air handler, used air conditioners and metal appliances as well as metal storage shelving that was bought to go inside the building to hold pallets of merchandise.

"They even took our appliance cart to load the stuff up with," she said.

Her father Andrew Willey, arrived as the men were throwing the items off the truck and trailer.

He testified that he went into his building and came out with a shotgun that he held on the men until police arrived.

"They did not attempt to leave?" defense attorney Terry Bliss asked Willey.

"Would you leave with a shotgun on you?" he asked back, causing the courtroom to erupt in laughter.

Bliss argued that her client thought it was a junk pile and didn't mean to steal. Garrett Dunham, attorney for Washington, said the crime was not grand larceny because it was hard to put a value on the items, which were not new.

"It is pretty hard to get around the fact that this was on someone else's property," said Shockley.

"Sorry guys, both guilty of grand larceny. If they thought it was junk, all they had to do was call up and ask if it was junk and offer to haul it away," she said.

Both Washington and Carter were allowed to remain free on bond until sentencing.

Source;  http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20110427/ESN01/104270302/Appliances-returned-arrest-made?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Eastern Shore News|s

Warrants Issued

Is it just ironic?

Action seems to continue since the arrest of the Walmart employee Tia Johnson. Johnson was arrested last week and charged with theft from Walmart that had been ongoing in the store for two years. In her statement she admitted to not charging family and friends for some purchases when they shopped at the store and turning in bogus return receipts for cash.

Warrants were issued on February 25, 2011 and served March 2, 2011 on Byrdie Johnson Gibbs and her husband TimmothyL. both of Fruitland, Md. The couple was charged with five counts of con-theft scheme.

Trial date is 4/22/11.

Walmart Employee Was Writing Her Own Statement When Officers Arrived

According to Monday's Daily Times newspaper the Walmart employee, Tia Johnson, who was arrested last week while at work was writing her own statement, admitting to the thefts when officers arrived. The arrest took place on February 24th at the Walmart store in Pocomoke City.

Ms. Johnson admitted to helping family and friends steal merchandise from the store and had over a period of two years, faked returns in exchange for money. She also admitted that she would underring some merchandise for her family and friends at check out time. This allowed them to leave without paying for many items.

According to court records, Ms. Johnson is charged with four counts of theft of amounts ranging from $100 to under $10,000, and one count of theft scheme that she had carried out for TWO years.

She was taken before the District Court Commissioner, released on $10,000 bail pending trial. A court date is scheduled for April 12.

Gee, what was she thinking all this time while stealing for her friends and family? How do you walk out of Walmart after stealing something without those annoying beepers going off? And didn't she know that after a time all of this would show up when the books had to be balanced if not at the end of the day certainly at the end of the month? Thieves don't think that far ahead. In fact, thieves don't think at all!

For those of you that don't know, Tia Johnson (along with her boyfriend Clarence Butch Jackson) were the last two people to see Christine Sheddy alive back in 2007 when the young woman went missing.

Her theft scheme probably isn't enough to get her sentenced to jail. Let's just hope this latest incident will make her think back a few years...........

It's on everyone's mind so I may as well say it. After all, we're all wondering the same thing..... where will all this lead and will it lead to anything more?

Ongoing Investigation Finally Gets The Thief Arrested!

Tia Lynn Johnson was arrested on Thursday by WCBI officer,Frank Wright, at her place of employment -- Walmart.Once handcuffed, she was escorted and paraded through the store to her ride to jail. She was released the same day on a $10,000 bond.

Apparently WCBI has been working on this case with the cooperation from Walmart since 2009 and have Tia on video. This time she can't she can't lie her way out of it and this time she WILL have to talk!

For those that don't know, Tia is the girlfriend (or former girlfriend)of Jr. Jackson who is being housed at ECI in Westover, sentenced to 3 years for burglary. These two, it has always been believed, were two of the last people to ever see Chistine Sheddy alive back in 2007.


WCBI, no doubt, must have become suspicious when Tia came up with quite a bit of money to bail Jr. out a few years ago and then somehow found more money to retain former assistand State's Attorney Kathy Smith to represent Jr.


Regardless of what she did with the stolen money it was the WCBI this entire time that has been lying low in the "trenches" trying to nail Tia with something, anything to get her to talk.......short of prying it out of her mouth!


Great job Investigator Frank Wright and the rest of the WCBI! What a great group you are to have been working on this for so very long and never losing sight that justice must always remain supreme.

And a giant step, perhaps, for the Christine Sheddy case.

Three From Pocomoke Arrested For Stealing From Local Business

POCOMOKE CITY, Md.- Three suspects are facing charges after being accused of stealing dozens of vehicle tire rims from a tire business in Pocomoke City.

Christopher D. Joseph, 19, Stephen E. Petitt, 23, and Travis A. Parsons, 24, all of Pocomoke City, were each charged on a criminal summons with theft over $1,000 and conspiracy.

The arrests stemmed from an incident alleged to have occurred at Nock's Tire on Ocean Highway during the overnight hours of Nov. 30. According to detectives with the Worcester County Bureau of Investigation, the three suspects stole 25 vehicle tire rims from the business.

An investigation into the incident led to the arrests of the aforementioned suspects. The investigation is continuing, and anyone with any information about this case is asked to contact the WCBI at (410) 352-3476, or the Worcester County Sheriff's Office at (410) 632-1100.

www.wboc.com

Thieves Steal Kettle From Bell Ringer

NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) - Thieves stole a Salvation Army kettle from a bell ringer outside the Walmart on Tidewater Drive Friday afternoon.

Matthew Pochily, director of public relations for the Salvation Army, said in a news release that one man distracted the bell ringer about 2:30 p.m. while a second man snuck up behind him, unhooked the kettle and fled.

While it was uncertain how much money the thieves took, the Salvation Army set a goal of $650 or more at the location for Black Friday, Pochily said in the release.

Anyone with information about the thieves is asked to call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.

"It's sad that at a time of great thanks, someone felt it necessary to steal from an organization who's mission is to serve those in need," said Major Lewis Reckline of the Salvation Army. "The money that they may have gotten away with in that kettle is no match for the services we offer that may have been able to help them had they come though our doors seeking assistance."

The Salvation Army, Walmart officials and Norfolk Police have since worked together to piece together a description of the two men, according to the news release. No description of the thieves was available.

The Salvation Army has more than 150 kettle locations throughout Hampton Roads. The Salvation Army rings bells Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Those interested in supporting the Salvation Army can visit SalArmyHR.org to donate online, sign-up to be a volunteer bell ringer or host their own Online Red Kettle. Donations can also be made via mobile device by texting SAL to 50555.

Nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from the Salvation Army each year. Their social services include providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless and opportunities for underprivileged children.

www.wavy.com

A New "Eyeball" For the Science Museum

The Science Museum of Virginia is getting its eyeball back.

Eighteen days after thieves stole an eyeball cover that sheathed the museum’s Grand Kugel, a replacement eyeball is set to be unveiled Wednesday at noon.

“When our eyeball was stolen a few weeks ago, there was so much community support that we had to replace it,” Richard Conti, the museum’s director, said in a statement.

The eyeball’s vendor replaced the cover at a “considerably reduced price,” Conti said, because “of all the incredible news coverage around the world.” The original cover cost $4,000.

During the early morning hours of Oct. 2, thieves cut away the eyeball that tightly wrapped the 8½ foot diameter, 29-ton ball. The decoration had been installed just 12 hours earlier to promote a new exhibit — “Goose Bumps! The Science of Fear” — at the museum.

The thieves have yet to be caught and the eyeball remains missing. Virginia’s Capitol Police, who have jurisdiction over the Science Museum Property, continue to investigate.

To celebrate the replacement eye, the museum staff “is asking for eye-deas on how to keep an eye on our eye,” Conti said. Suggestions can be posted on the Science Museum of Virginia’s Facebook page.

All ideas will be entered into a random drawing for an “eye-pod” and a free family museum membership, Conti said. The winner will be announced at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.

www.timesdispatch.com

Thieves Rip Off Museums's Eyeball

Someone poked the Science Museum of Virginia in the eye.

At least that's how Museum Director Richard Conti feels.

Just 12 hours after Conti's staff turned the iconic Grand Kugel outside the museum into a giant eyeball, someone stole its cover.

About 1:30 a.m. Saturday, thieves cut away a fabric cover resembling a large eyeball that tightly wrapped the 8 ½-foot diameter, 29-ton ball, Conti said. The globe gyrates on a thin film of water.

The eyeball decoration, valued at $4,000, promoted a "Goose Bumps, the Science of Fear" exhibit at the museum in conjunction with Halloween.

"We thought it would be kind of cool to turn the Kugel into an eyeball," he said. "We have mummies and sea monsters in the Imax, and it was just kind of a fun way to get attention that something new and different is going on here."

Turning the Kugel into an eyeball "is pretty striking," he added.

But someone decided to spoil the fun before it really got started.

"It was its first night," explained a disappointed Conti, who wondered what use the thieves would make of their pilfered prize. "Where are they going to put it?"

Virginia's Capitol Police, who have jurisdiction over the Science Museum property, are investigating. They are reviewing surveillance camera photos of the possible suspects.

"Two individuals were seen running away from the globe towards Broad Street carrying and folding the fabric eye as they fled," police said in a statement. They were last seen crossing Broad heading towards North Robinson Street.

www.timesdispatch.com

Thieves Steal Bronze Vases From Veteran's Graves

CHESAPEAKE
Is nothing sacred?

It's a fair question when thieves are robbing from the dead, and that's what Michael Ruiz Cardona and Holly Minnie Chandler were charged with when they were arrested Wednesday by Chesapeake police.

According to police reports, Cardona and Chandler were stocking their van with the bronze vases that mark the plots of veterans' graves at Greenlawn Memorial Gardens.

Police patrolling the area around 8:45 p.m. took the suspects into custody, charging each with one count of grand larceny with intent to sell and one count of vandalism.

They could face additional counts, as each stolen vase represents a separate offense.

Cardona, 23, of Decatur Street in Portsmouth has three previous convictions, including one in 2008 for petty larceny and one in 2009 for grand larceny. Both were in Portsmouth.

Chandler, 21, is of the 2500 block of Woodshire Circle in Chesapeake.

The cemetery, at 3920 Airline Blvd., reported 101 vases stolen on six occasions since Aug. 30.

A police investigation concluded Cardona and Chandler are responsible for at least 53 of those vases, Chesapeake police spokeswoman Officer Dorienne Boykin said.

The arrests are a relief to Hinton Hurff, president of Greenlawn Memorial Gardens. Hurff said he has been distressed by the thefts of the costly vases, which are not covered by insurance.

"It's really emotional for the family. I hope this puts an end to it," he said.

A typical vase assembly kit costs $548, including $300 for the vase itself. The vases are not the property of the cemetery; they are the property of the plot owners. However, Hurff plans to offer the family members a discount if they choose to replace a missing vase.

Diane Pettway, who visited the cemetery last week to put birthday flowers in the vase on her father's grave, was stunned when she found no vase. The chain holding it in place had been cut.

"I started looking around, and I saw a lot missing," she said. "You have to be pretty low to do this. Nobody should steal to begin with, but you don't get any lower than stealing from a grave. On top of that, these are veterans."

Thieves usually pilfer the bronze vases from grave sites to melt them down for scrap metal, typically getting $1.50 a pound - $30 to $65 or more for a vase between 20 and 45 pounds.

Cemeteries in Raleigh, N.C.; Charlotte, N.C.; Albany, N.Y.; and Las Vegas have had vases stolen by the hundreds in the past year. Boykin said no additional Chesapeake cemeteries have reported problems.

In Norfolk, three reports were filed regarding stolen vases from Woodlawn Memorial Gardens at 6309 E. Virginia Beach Blvd., Norfolk police spokeswoman Karen Parker-Chesson said.

Three reports were also filed since May by Forest Lawn Cemetery at 8100 Granby St., Parker-Chesson said.

Hurff said securing the 47 acres at Greenlawn is not realistic. Cameras and floodlights are also not practical, he said.

Pettway said she is unsure what her father's replacement vase will be made from.

"Maybe ceramic or plastic, I don't know," she said. "It's just horrible what they did."

http://www.hamptonroads.com/

Anyone Interested In Buying Some Beer?

Burglars can't find beer buyers.

WEST POINT, Miss. (AP) - Three people have been arrested after they were found passed out after drinking 11 cases of beer allegedly stolen from a club.

Clay County Chief Deputy Eddie Scott tells the Commercial Dispatch that Barbara Dewberry; her son, David Hurst and her 17-year-old grandson, all of Mantee, are accused of burglarizing the County Line Club near West Point last week. Scott says cash and 20 cases of beer went missing.

Scott says dispatchers were tipped that people were trying to sell beer to neighbors shortly after the burglary.

He says deputies found the three passed out at one of their houses in Mantee. He says they apparently drank more than 11 cases of beer after they failed to find buyers.

He says the remaining beer and some cash were recovered.

www.wavy.com