With one traffic stop, police may have solved thirteen open cases and shutdown a car parts stealing ring.
An Oakland County Sheriff’s deputy from the Independence Township substation stopped a vehicle with three Clarkston High School students around 5:15 a.m. on Chestnut Hill Court for failure to turn down high beam lights for oncoming traffic. The car also had something hanging from its rearview mirror and a plastic plate covering the license plate making the registration tough to read, stated reports.
The driver of the vehicle, an 18-year-old Independence Township man was driving on a restricted license that allowed him to have no passengers besides his family. The two passengers were 16-year-old Independence Township juveniles. A fourth 17-year-old Independence Township man was implicated, said Detective Tim Hein, who explained none of the four had any criminal history.
There were several cases of larceny, malicious destruction of property and home invasion in the area over the last few weeks drawing further suspicion to the vehicle.
?(The crimes) include larceny from auto, malicious destruction of property and home invasion because they were stealing stuff out of cars in garages and out of garages attached to homes,? said Hein.
According to reports, several items including car parts to a Mustang and Camaro, lap top computer, credit cards, compact discs, two iPods and other electrical equipment were confiscated during the stop.
‘We have reason to believe these (suspects) were setting up a steal to order business at Clarkston High School through which they take requests for parts, steal them and sell them.?
Included in police reports at the Independence Township substation is a tachometer stolen from a vehicle overnight on Bluebreech Terrace and the car hood was left open on May 6. In another case that same day, headlights on Golf Pointe Drive were stolen off a Ford Mustang. On Parview, a convertible was entered by cutting the roof and the hood was left open although nothing was reported missing the same day.
According to Hein, reports are being compiled on the cases.
‘We were told by the people involved this started last summer and escalated since,? said Hein.
‘They didn’t use forced entry into any of these (garage) structures. If the door was locked, they moved on. It drives me crazy. I tell people all the time ‘Lock your doors and you can avoid 90 percent of this,? added Hein.
The case remains under investigation.