(KNSI) – A burglary suspect has been charged after allegedly fleeing police and crashing into a building in Melrose.
According to the criminal complaint, deputies were called to Bueckers Recycling in Millwood Township on Tuesday morning. The owner reported someone had tried to break into a vehicle in the parking lot. Deputies saw footprints leading to the garage door, indicating a potrntially bigger theft. Staff reported that $3,350 was missing, along with a shotgun and tools. The business’s security system hard drive had been ripped out.
In a potential break for law enforcement, it appeared the suspect also cooked a corn dog taken from a freezer. The stick was found in the trash and taken for DNA evidence, along with a pair of mechanic gloves at the scene. The same boot prints found in the parking lot were also seen walking to two detached sheds on the property. The footprints then led officers to a neighbor’s property, where the hard drive from the security camera was found.
Soon after the initial call, dispatch received a report of a suspicious person at the intersection of County Road 17 and County Road 168 in Millwood Township, a couple of miles north of the recycling center. The caller said the man was wearing a black jacket, a camouflage bag, and a hat. The person felt the man was under the influence of something and acting strange. He was on a bike but ditched it near a home in the 31000-block of County Road 169 in Melrose Township.
A conservation officer responded to the call and saw the person described by the caller walk into a nearby home onCounty Road 17 in Melrose Township. The first deputy on scene spoke to a woman, who identified the man as her son, Carlos Lee Rey Garza. She said the 32-year-old man was sleeping, and he refused to come to the door.
The investigator then went to the home on County Road 169 and found the bike. Boot prints near the bike appear to match what the deputy observed at the recycling center. While taking pictures of the prints, an area homeowner told the deputy that his son’s vehicle had been rummaged through overnight, and his wallet was found on the ground and was missing $150 in cash. The man said his wife’s car had also been gone through, and she was missing her sunglasses.
Deputies compared the bootprints from all the scenes, which appeared to match. Later that day, deputies saw Garza driving and pulled him over. When he was told he was being arrested, Garza allegedly fled at a high rate of speed towards Melrose. He later crashed into a business in town. Police say Garza ran on foot from the crash and was found by a K9 team hiding in a box truck. He was arrested without further incident.
During the arrest, law enforcement found $463 in cash and found he was wearing muck-style boots. Police say the pattern matched all of the prints at the crime scenes. While in the squad car, he also began banging his head in the back seat and making suicidal comments.
A deputy searched the crashed car and found a black jacket, a camouflage bag and a hat. The bag contained various items, including a headlamp, torch, lighter, and screwdriver.
Having recovered the surveillance system hard drive from the recycling center, law enforcement accessed the video and allegedly saw someone wearing muck-style boots, a black jacket, and a stocking cap enter the truck parked in front.
He’s been charged with two counts of third-degree burglary and fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle. He’s being held on $400,000 bail without conditions and $200,000 with. Garza’s next court date is set for February 21st.
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