String of vehicle break-ins reported
Owners of least 24 vehicles woke Sunday morning to find their cars and trucks had been broken into, and two more found that their vehicles had been stolen.
The vehicles were all parked at local apartment complexes. Five vehicles were broken into at the ChapelRidge of Conway Apartments near Cantrell Field municipal airport, along with two vehicles parked at Westbury Park Apartments near Nutter's Chapel Plaza, one at The Links at Cadron Valley Apartment Community and one at Centennial Valley Apartment Community.
The remaining 15 were all parked at the Westlake Apartment Community.
Of the two vehicles stolen, one was parked at Westlake apartments and the other at Centennial Valley apartments. Both were recovered Monday.
Lt. Danny Moody of the Conway Police Department said that while all 24 break-ins were very likely not related, the large concentration of criminal activity at Westlake apartments and the nearby Links at Cadron and Centennial Valley apartments could be.
"Whenever you have this many vehicle breaking and enterings in such a small area it would certainly appear that they may be related," Moody said.
One vehicle, a Chevrolet Caprice, was located in Pine Bluff after a victim discovered that a stolen credit card was being used there. The victim notified CPD which, in turn, passed along the information and vehicle description to the Pine Bluff Police Department. The vehicle was quickly recovered by PBPD and its four occupants arrested as suspects in the string of breaking and enterings and auto thefts.
Two CPD detectives traveled to Pine Bluff Monday to investigate and interview the suspects, Moody said.
The other stolen vehicle, a pickup truck parked Sunday night at Westlake Apartments, was found Monday morning by its owner parked in another area of the apartment complex's parking lot. Moody said the victim found nothing missing except half a tank of gas.
No CPD incident reports providing more information on the break-ins or thefts were available Monday, but they should be approved by CPD and released in coming days, Moody said.
(Staff writer Joe Lamb can be reached by e-mail at joe.lamb@thecabin.net or by phone at 505-1238. Send us your news at www.thecabin.net/submit)