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Magna residents think same thief is behind rash of burglaries

Posted at 7:05 PM, Mar 05, 2019
and last updated 2019-03-06 17:46:19-05

MAGNA, Utah -- Residents of Magna are concerned that the same thief is targeting several homes in one area, by creepily sneaking around late at night.

Even though the person has been caught several times on surveillance cameras, Unified Police said there's not enough information to know who is carrying out the thefts.

The thief or thieves have rummaged through cars, raided garages and walked away with thousands of dollars worth of stolen goods in the area north and south of 3500 South, between 7200 West and 8000 West.

Joe Conlon said power tools disappeared from his garage two weeks ago. A man caught on Conlon's surveillance cameras is seen carefully checking vehicle doors to see if they're unlocked, before he steps into the garage.

"Went through my toolbox and took all my higher-end Milwaukee stuff," Conlon said, of the tools the man stole.

The middle-of-the-night visitor took off with $600 worth of goods from Conlon's garage.

"It made me feel violated," Conlon said. "Somebody came right in my yard, acted like they own the place, come in, took my tools that I make my livelihood from, and just walked off."

Teddi Martinez said $900 of stuff vanished from her vehicle in late January. She, too, caught the late-night thief on camera.

Neighbors began to post their videos on social media, and made the connection.

Martinez and Conlon noticed similarities such as the man rides a bike, and wears similar clothing and reflective shoes. He often covers his face and in some cases, wears a backpack. A hat he's seen wearing in Martinez's video shows a sticker on the brim that appears to be the same as what's shown in Conlon's video.

"Seems to be the same person," Martinez said.

Other neighbors said they've lost gifts, tools, remote control cars and even a drone. In some cases, the suspect returns to the same homes more than once.

Unified Police said they aren't sure if all of the thefts are related, but it does appear that the suspect or suspects seem to be targeting cars, garages, and sheds.

Even with all the videos, a lack of suspect information led Unified Police to set many of the cases as "inactive."

However, they said anyone with information on the thefts can contact them at 801-743-7000.

They urge people to lock everything up, keep valuables out of sight, and to record serial numbers of items they own.

That way the items can be returned to the owner if they are later recovered.

Conlon and Martinez both installed additional security features like extra cameras and motion-detecting lights. Conlon now padlocks the gate to his backyard.