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Friday's Internet Edition, November 21, 2008.
Police nab grand theft trio in Galt
Team targeted Galt Market vendors
By Rachael Ackerman
Herald Editor
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For the past year vendors at the Galt Market have been the targets of very clever thief, one who has been able to access private areas in vendor vehicles and steal cash proceeds stored there at the end of the market day.
Thus far, police estimate the thieves have made off with thousands of hard-earned market dollars in eight separate instances of grand theft of no less than $400, and most often over $1,000, they just weren’t sure how.
That all changed last week when one market vendor noticed something funny about the young black man who had offered to help her load her truck at the end of the market day. Thinking she had some last minute customers, she turned her back on the man to answer a variety of questions a pair of young lady shoppers were asking about her merchandise.
Hearing a funny sound, she turned to discover that the man helping load her truck was no longer at the rear of the vehicle toting and hauling; instead, she found him in the cab of her vehicle helping himself to her daily cash proceeds.
When the vendor shouted at the man, police say he ran, but not without first taking the vendor’s cash purse that she reported held close to $2,000 in cash.
When she turned around, the two women, who had been so interested in her products, were walking away. That made the victim suspicious and she alerted police to the women when she reported the theft.
Police received the call on April 29 and headed to the market, where, according to Galt Police Sergeant Craig Walton, the two women were questioned in connection with the robbery. At that time, the two women said they did not know any black man and had nothing to do with the theft.
Walton said police doubted their story and had a Galt police unit observe where the pair went when they left the market.
“It took a few minutes of driving around, but they eventually went to Carl’s Jr. in Galt and guess who they met up with there?” said Walton. “It was the young black man from the market both had said they did not know.”
When the trio exited Carl’s Jr., Galt police made contact with them and discovered $300 cash on one of the suspects.
“We knew there was more cash reported missing, but none of the three had any more than the $300 on them,” said Walton. “When we went inside the restaurant, we discovered a market cart, the kind you push. It was empty except for a wallet, which was also empty. The victim identified it as hers.”
The problem, said Walton, was connecting the suspects to the cart and the wallet. That’s where technology stepped in to help solve the crime.
“We turned to video tape,” said Walton. “What we discovered from the market video was the male suspect met up with a third female, older, dropped the wallet into her cart, like the one we found at Carl’s Jr. Then she leaves the market and they go their separate ways.”
Walton said this was a classic case of conspiracy to commit grand theft by working as a team.
“The man offers to help the vendor, usually older or a female alone, the girls come along and distract the vendor so the man can move undetected to the front of the vehicle to steal the cash. When he is done, he unloads the wallet on a fourth party, as yet unseen,” said Walton. “That way, if any of them is searched or questioned, they have nothing on them. Then, they meet up outside of the market and they’re off. That’s what they did here.”
After the vendor identified the trio, and the video tape confirmed the exchange of the wallet, police arrested Patricia McCuray, 41, Vaneshia St. Jules, 27 (who had outstanding no-bail warrants for theft related charges), and Albert St. Jules, 45, on charges of grand theft.
Police are still investigating a fourth party based on video evidence from the market and witness testimony from Carl’s Jr. that the woman with the cart who met with St. Jules in the market to take the wallet out of the market, was the same woman who pushed the same cart into the Carl’s Jr. restaurant and met up with the trio later the same day.
Saying the method of operation is very similar to the thefts of the past, Walton said the Galt Police Department is confident that they have apprehended the people responsible for the rash of vendor thefts at the market over the past year.
“We got a good break when this vendor noticed something just wasn’t right and turned around,” said Walton. “She got a good look at all three suspects and was able to point them out to us. Then, market cameras did the job they are supposed to do and observed activities that we couldn’t have been able to see otherwise. You can’t lie when it’s all on tape. You just can’t.”
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