Arkadelphia police are investigating a series of recent burglaries in which the suspect entered the home while the residents were inside.
According to Sgt. Roy Bethell, criminal investigator for the Arkadelphia Police Department, three burglaries happened while the people were home, but there have been a rash of several more break-ins.
On Sunday, Feb. 21, at 6:03 a.m., police were called to a home at 417 N. Austin St., where residents there said they were awakened two hours earlier by the sound of a barking dog. They didn’t think anything of it, but later discovered a 42-inch television and an Xbox gaming system had been stolen. They told police they had locked the door before going to bed, but that it was unlocked when they discovered the items were missing.
On Tuesday, March 16, an 802 Crittenden St. woman returned home from grocery shopping at 2:25 p.m. and, before approaching her home, she heard a crash inside. As she walked closer to the front door she saw someone in the living room. She yelled at the perpetrator, whom she chased out the back door. She called 911 to report the burglary-in-progress, and gave police a description of a short, black male in his mid-20s with short hair.
She showed police a lamp the suspect knocked over and broke, and the location where an Xbox used to be, next to the living room television. The suspect, however, dropped the gaming system near the back door during his escape.
On Saturday, March 20, a resident of Country Club Villa called 911 at 3:08 a.m. to report that someone had gone through the kitchen window, stole three purses and a set of car keys, and exited through the front door. Bethell said the police report indicates the residents were in the living room watching television when they heard a noise in the kitchen. Suspecting someone was already in the apartment or trying to get inside, one of them yelled, “Hello!” and ran upstairs. The suspect, Bethell said, was apparently inside the apartment when the resident yelled. The suspect ran through the apartment and outside the front door, unlocking it on his way out.
The residents came back downstairs to find the kitchen window was open and that the previously locked front door had been unlocked. One resident looked outside and saw a black male wearing a red-and-white shirt or hooded sweatshirt. The complainant said he watched the suspect as he walked south through the parking lot, but lost sight of him as he approached a wooded area near the apartment complex.
Just two hours later, police received another call at the same apartment complex. The resident said he went upstairs for a while after having played PlayStation 3. When he returned downstairs he noticed the glass, sliding back door was cracked. He found missing his video game, along with a PlayStation 3 game and a cell phone.
There have also been vehicle break-ins in the parking lots of nearby apartment complexes. Bethell said change and other valuables were stolen from unlocked cars. He said police are uncertain if the home and vehicle break-ins are directly linked.
Bethell said APD does not have any “people of interest at this time. We’re following up on some leads.” He encouraged anyone who has information on the crimes call APD at 246-4545.
Bethell said home and car burglaries are not uncommon in Arkadelphia, but “a majority of the burglaries that we work or have worked in the past have been where the homes or apartments were unoccupied. This is very alarming in that the suspect is bold enough to enter a residence when it is occupied.”
Asked if Arkadelphia residents should worry, he said, “People should be alarmed, and they do need to take precautions.”
He encouraged that everyone keep a phone at hand to call 911 in case of a home invasion. “If you don’t have one, get one.” Also, never confront the offender, as he may be armed and dangerous. “Seek safety if possible, and call police.”
Other precautions a family should take include having a “safety plan,” or a designated meeting place both inside and outside your home where everyone should congregate. If a burglar is inside your home, stay outside. If he is outside or trying to break in, congregate at that meeting place or at another outside location on the opposite side of the home. “Hold meetings with your family (as a precaution) that something like that happens. Go through a drill.”
Additionally, make sure your home is secure. “Check your windows. Lock your doors at night. If you hear or see anything alarming, don’t hesitate to call police and have them come check it out.”
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Arkadelphia police are investigating a series of recent burglaries in which the suspect entered the home while the residents were inside.
According to Sgt. Roy Bethell, criminal investigator for the Arkadelphia Police Department, three burglaries happened while the people were home, but there have been a rash of several more break-ins.
On Sunday, Feb. 21, at 6:03 a.m., police were called to a home at 417 N. Austin St., where residents there said they were awakened two hours earlier by the sound of a barking dog. They didn’t think anything of it, but later discovered a 42-inch television and an Xbox gaming system had been stolen. They told police they had locked the door before going to bed, but that it was unlocked when they discovered the items were missing.
On Tuesday, March 16, an 802 Crittenden St. woman returned home from grocery shopping at 2:25 p.m. and, before approaching her home, she heard a crash inside. As she walked closer to the front door she saw someone in the living room. She yelled at the perpetrator, whom she chased out the back door. She called 911 to report the burglary-in-progress, and gave police a description of a short, black male in his mid-20s with short hair.
She showed police a lamp the suspect knocked over and broke, and the location where an Xbox used to be, next to the living room television. The suspect, however, dropped the gaming system near the back door during his escape.
On Saturday, March 20, a resident of Country Club Villa called 911 at 3:08 a.m. to report that someone had gone through the kitchen window, stole three purses and a set of car keys, and exited through the front door. Bethell said the police report indicates the residents were in the living room watching television when they heard a noise in the kitchen. Suspecting someone was already in the apartment or trying to get inside, one of them yelled, “Hello!” and ran upstairs. The suspect, Bethell said, was apparently inside the apartment when the resident yelled. The suspect ran through the apartment and outside the front door, unlocking it on his way out.
The residents came back downstairs to find the kitchen window was open and that the previously locked front door had been unlocked. One resident looked outside and saw a black male wearing a red-and-white shirt or hooded sweatshirt. The complainant said he watched the suspect as he walked south through the parking lot, but lost sight of him as he approached a wooded area near the apartment complex.
Just two hours later, police received another call at the same apartment complex. The resident said he went upstairs for a while after having played PlayStation 3. When he returned downstairs he noticed the glass, sliding back door was cracked. He found missing his video game, along with a PlayStation 3 game and a cell phone.
There have also been vehicle break-ins in the parking lots of nearby apartment complexes. Bethell said change and other valuables were stolen from unlocked cars. He said police are uncertain if the home and vehicle break-ins are directly linked.
Bethell said APD does not have any “people of interest at this time. We’re following up on some leads.” He encouraged anyone who has information on the crimes call APD at 246-4545.
Bethell said home and car burglaries are not uncommon in Arkadelphia, but “a majority of the burglaries that we work or have worked in the past have been where the homes or apartments were unoccupied. This is very alarming in that the suspect is bold enough to enter a residence when it is occupied.”
Asked if Arkadelphia residents should worry, he said, “People should be alarmed, and they do need to take precautions.”
He encouraged that everyone keep a phone at hand to call 911 in case of a home invasion. “If you don’t have one, get one.” Also, never confront the offender, as he may be armed and dangerous. “Seek safety if possible, and call police.”
Other precautions a family should take include having a “safety plan,” or a designated meeting place both inside and outside your home where everyone should congregate. If a burglar is inside your home, stay outside. If he is outside or trying to break in, congregate at that meeting place or at another outside location on the opposite side of the home. “Hold meetings with your family (as a precaution) that something like that happens. Go through a drill.”
Additionally, make sure your home is secure. “Check your windows. Lock your doors at night. If you hear or see anything alarming, don’t hesitate to call police and have them come check it out.”
