The Richland County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit has warranted a series of burglary arrests among Richland County individuals, whom officials say may be linked to additional burglaries in neighboring counties. Additionally, the Mansfield Police Department has identified an increase in burglary activity.
In late October, Ben Golden, 23, of Mansfield attempted to sell a stolen gun to a Sportsman’s Den employee and was charged with burglary. Det. Stacy Dittrich noted that Golden’s arrest led to the arrest of other individuals: Larry Baxter, 23, of Ashland was charged with burglary; Andrea Reil, 24, of Mansfield was charged with conspiracy to commit burglary, and April Barker, 34, of Mansfield was arrested on a felony warrant on a charge of receiving stolen property.
Captain Eric Bosko reported that three individuals arrested for burglary in Huron County are connected to a burglary that occurred in Shiloh.
He further stated that the burglaries recently committed in Richland County are not concentrated to any one area. “Before, [the burglaries] used to be concentrated, but now we might have one group target part of the county and then move to another part of the county because they don’t want to draw attention to themselves.”
While the burglaries may not be central to any particular location, Bosko noted that a constant factor shared among the last five groups arrested for burglary are that they are all heroin addicts.
“It hasn’t been 70 or 80 percent, but 100 percent of the groups we’ve arrested recently have been heroin addicts,” stated Bosko.
Residents should take note that most of the burglaries have occurred during the day.
Among Richland County unincorporated areas, there have been approximately 480 reported burglaries through October.
Specific to Mansfield, Deputy Chief of Police with the Mansfield Police Department Tobie Smith released calls for service and crime statistics from January – October of 2013, which were compiled by the Records and Data Section of the Mansfield Division of Police.
From January to October of 2013, officers responded to a total of 806 burglaries (a 4.9 percent increase from 2012 in which there were 768 burglaries). In October of this year alone, there were 105 burglaries, compared to 81 burglaries the year prior (a 29.6 percent increase).
Offering a safety tip to all residents, Bosko stated, “The biggest thing to keep in mind is to be observant. Watch your neighborhood and if you see a car there that you don’t recognize, call the Sheriff’s Office, or if you’re in an incorporated area, call the police agency.”
Sheriff Steve Sheldon also offered a piece of advice, encouraging residents to remember, “lights, locks, alarms, and dogs—even a little yappy dog helps.”
Some of the recovered merchandise from the recent burglaries has not yet been identified to the owner. If the photo above looks familiar, please contact Det. Dittrich at 419-774-5610.
Bosko stated that typically the detectives can determine where the stolen items belong. “The problem is that the burglaries aren’t occurring just here in Richland County, so the items might be somewhere else,” he said.
It’s a matter of identifying the location of where the items were stolen and then matching that location with the resident.
Once the resident is identified, the goods are returned. “Sometimes the goods are kept until prosecution is done and then we document and photograph the items, and then we can release them back to owner,” Bosko said.
If any resident in Richland County and/or adjoining counties has been a victim of a burglary and failed to report it, or recognize any of the property photographed above, please contact Det. Stacy Dittrich at 419-774-5610.
“Now we might have one group target part of the county and then move to another part of the county because they don’t want to draw attention to themselves,” said Capt. Eric Bosko.
