[graciegirl]

copied from The Daily Sun today May 16, 2012

Appliances taken from 16 homes in string of crimes.
Staff Report.

The Villages-Three people were arrested in cnnection with a string of burglaries in The Villages that resulted in household appliances being taken from 16 different homes, according to Capt. Kevin Hofecker of the Sumter County Sheriff"s Office.

Hofecker said the burglaries started around March 1 and ended around April 12 with the arrest of a suspect.

The burglaries took place, according to Hofecker, at newly constructed homes in The Villages that were nearing completion.

The suspects took new appliances from the residences before the homes were occupied., he said.

The stolen items, according to Hofecker, ranged from washers and dryers to microwaves and ranges.

The first arrest came April 13 after Sumter sheriff's Detective Brad Wasson pieced together video surveillance evidence.

In the video, Wasson was able to see a black Chevrolet truck leaving the area with a load of appliances.

The video showed a portion of the license number, and Wasson was able to determine ownership, according to reports.

Wasson was able to identify the driver of the vehicle as Steven Michael Haislip, 26, of Belleview.

Haislip was arrested and charged with one count of grand theft, according to his arrest affidavit.

Bond was set at $7,000 according to jail records.

Wasson learned that Haislip and others were being directed to the homes by a construction worker in The Villages, who told them where the stocked homes were located, Hofecker said.

On May 1, Daniel Keith Sipes, 39, of Belleview was arrested on the job, according to reports.

Sipes was charged with one count of burglary, and h is bond was set at $2,000, according to jail records.

A third suspect, Cynthia Elizabeth Vilar, 26, was arrested at her residence located in the 13000 block of SE County Road 25 in Belleview, Hofecker said.

Vilar was charged with one count of burglary and one count of grand theft, according to arrest affidavit. Bond was set at $7,000. according to jail records.

Authorities have not been able to recover any of the missingi items, Hofecker said.

(Copied for the interest of folks off campus.,GG.)

[Golfer in Sanibel]

Thanks Gracie and kudos to Detective Wasson.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

........ (Copied for the interest of folks off campus.,GG.)

Thank you!!

Bill

[missypie]

Glad they gottem!!!!

Really dislike when people take things from others that they have not earned themselves.

How do ya sleep at night?????

[BobKat1]

Sweet! This kind of quick action will help to deter others. It won't stop it, but it does send a message.

[asianthree]

Good job Gracie. Wonder what cameras they got the pics from?

[PaPaLarry]

Thanks Gracie for update. I did see it in paper after. Didn't say if this was during the day or at night?? I'm curious why only some of the license number came out on video? I wonder what they did for work, that they were able to have access to The Villages? At least we can be thankful for the Sheriffs Office for apprehending them. Makes me want to be more alert in neighborhood, and like my Honey says, Lock the doors!!!!

[Dayzee]

Thanks for the update Gracie.

[Happinow]

We were warned of this prior to closing. We wanted to see our home the day before closing and our realtor told us to be sure the door was locked when we left. We told him that since we weren't able to have a key we were going to come and go the day before closing and would lock up at the end of the day. We knew our neighbors by then and saw no harm in leaving the door unlocked during the day as there was nothing but appliances in there. He said people were going around stealing appliances out of the new homes and we need to lock up. I was very surprised and saddened to hear this. Then I thought in spite of this news, I feel that TV is still one of the safest places to live!

[jimbo2012]

This thread prompted me to ask about alarms here

[jblum315]

This did not happen 3 years ago when many houses were being constructed in Hemingway where I live. Does anyone know if these burglaries took place in the area S of 466A?

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by jblum315

This did not happen 3 years ago when many houses were being constructed in Hemingway where I live. Does anyone know if these burglaries took place in the area S of 466A?

I am guessing either there or at Mission Hills on 466. Laurel Valley didn't have any. That is all of the areas that are new builds. South of 466A is more isolated in places at this time. Soon it too will be "surrounded".

[Sable99]

I was told when I had my walk through on May 4th that ranges were taken from 6 homes one weekend and 6 microwaves were taken the next weekend from nearly finished homes. He told me it was the responsiblity of the last contractor in the house to make sure the doors were locked! He told me this after I mentioned I was able to get into my house the day before my closing as the patio door was left unlocked!

I would think that there may be more people involved. It seems to me that it would be difficult for one man and one woman to remove washers, dryers and stoves. But, who knows.

As far as the cameras. I was told by my realtor that there were cameras at all the gates for security purposes.

[Dennis Ga]

Builders have a hard time keeping material from being taken. This is a problem everwhere their is new construction. People think, 'I just need a couple of 2x4's and they want miss them'. In truth, now with all the computer programs they only order the number of each item they need for that project.

[spk7951]

A friend of mine works for Community Watch and had told me about these thefts last week. They occurred in the new build areas south of 466A mostly in the evening after the crews had left for the day. Security cameras did get pictures of the truck leaving the area with their "take".
According to the paper today one of the people arrested worked for a contractor and would tell others when it was good to hit a house for the appliances.