Arrest made in stealing of ‘liquid assets’ Hidden camera surveillance and late-night police work helped solve a series of break-ins at the Crittenden-Livingston Water District's loading station at Frances.
Deputy Don Perry nabbed a suspect between 2 and 3 a.m., Monday morning after staking out the scene of repeated crimes. The deputy parked across the street from the water loading station where customers pay with coins to fill their water tanks with drinking water. Shortly after 2 a.m., Perry saw a vehicle pass by slowly. It went through Frances and turned around south of town then returned to the loading station.
The deputy observed as Ernest Martin, 26, of Brown Mine Road cut the lock off the loading station vending machine with a set of bolt cutters. The deputy moved in and arrested Martin on one count of possession of burglary tools and one count of criminal mischief. The sheriff's department report says that other charges are pending.
Perry's report included a confession statement signed by the suspect who admitted to breaking into the water vending machine about eight times and getting around $20 each time. He told the deputy that the machine only had $4 or $5 in it Monday morning. The confession statement included his reasoning for the alleged burglaries. Martin wrote that he has been out of work for about 10 months and needed the money.
Donnie Beavers, superintendent of the Crittenden-Livingston Water District, said records indicate that $969 worth of coins have been stolen from the loading station since January of 2006. The station keeps track of the amount of water that has been distributed and Beavers said there have been several times the station has been burglarized. A $10 lock was destroyed each time a burglary occurred, Beavers explained.
"It's happened pretty regularly for some time, about twice a month," Beavers said.
For the last couple of months, the district has been watching the station with an infrared surveillance camera. On several occasions, the camera recorded photographs of the suspect's car.
The camera gave investigators an idea of who was breaking into the machine, and it also helped them understand the pattern because the camera records the date and time of each photograph. The camera is also used to keep an eye on water hydrants where the district believes water is being stolen.
Sheriff Wayne Agent said the water district's cooperation and surveillance camera helped his department solve the crime. Agent said Perry had been watching the station for only a few minutes early Monday morning when Martin appeared.
The deputy recovered a camouflage face mask, hat and gloves believed to be used in the alleged crimes. He also found bolt cutters, a screwdriver and coin purse in the suspect's car.
"The photographs taken at night helped us determine about when it was taking place," the sheriff said. "Most of the time it was happening late Sunday night or early Monday morning."