Kansas City recorded 6,956 burglaries last year, but I can assure you that there are not 6,956 suspects responsible for them. Most burglars in Kansas City are persistent offenders, breaking into homes and businesses over and over again. We have arrested single suspects responsible for hundreds of burglaries, and as soon as we do, neighborhoods that have been plagued with these thefts suddenly have none. Police grow weary, arresting the same people over and over again. Sometimes they’ll arrest them for burglary and see them back out on the streets in the next few days, set free by low bond amounts and given probation instead of prison time. This is an exceptionally frustrating issue for us at KCPD. Our officers and detectives do an absolutely phenomenal job of finding and arresting these persistent offenders, but other pieces of the criminal justice system send them back out to commit their crimes again.
So I wanted to show you an example of just a couple of the persistent offenders who have been plaguing us lately.
First, there’s a 48-year-old man who has been involved in persistent criminal activity in Kansas City, Mo., and surrounding areas since 1989. He is devastating areas of the South Patrol Division right now and is a person of interest in crimes in numerous other jurisdictions, as well. Here’s some of his timeline:
Aug. 17, 1989 – Convicted of stealing, sentenced to 60 days in jail
Nov. 18, 1989 – Convicted of burglary, sentenced to five years of probation
July 13, 1990 – Convicted of burglary, sentenced to two years in prison
Oct. 12, 1990 to March 14, 1991 – Incarcerated
March 15, 1991 – Paroled
Sept. 4, 1991, to June 12, 1992 – Incarcerated for parole violation
July 15, 1992 – Complete release from parole
April 29, 1994 – Convicted of stealing a motor vehicle, sentenced to three years in prison
April 29, 1994, to Aug. 7, 1995 – Incarcerated
Aug. 8, 1995 – Paroled
Sept. 15, 1996 – Convicted for stealing, sentenced to 30 days in jail
Sept. 8, 1997, to March 24, 1998 – Incarcerated
Aug. 12, 2001 – convicted of two felony counts of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, sentenced to four years of probation
Dec. 17, 2002 – convicted of driving with a revoked license, sentenced to two years of probation
April 28, 2011 – Charged with theft between $500 and $2,500
June 12, 2011 – Charged with theft between $500 and $2,500
July 14, 2011 – Charged with 1st degree burglary
Aug. 4, 2011 – Bonded out of Jackson County Jail by posting 10 percent of $7,500 bond
The last three charges involved repeated theft at Notre de Dame de Sion High School in South Kansas City. They were spaced apart enough that the school was able to replace the equipment, and then those replacements were subsequently stolen.
Then there’s a 51-year-old man who has victimized many, many people in the Metro Patrol Division and beyond. His criminal career in Kansas City began in 1982:
May 12, 1982 – Convicted of larceny under $50, sentenced to 730 days of probation
Nov. 29, 1984 – Convicted of larceny over $200, sentenced to one year of probation
Dec. 1, 1991 – Convicted of two counts of burglary, sentenced to two years of probation
Feb. 27, 1994 – Convicted of larceny under $50 in Kansas, sentence unknown
July 27, 1994 – Convicted of possessing a weapon in Kansas, sentence unknown
Aug. 30, 1995 – Convicted of 1st-degree burglary, two counts of 2nd-degree burglary, two counts of stealing, sentenced to 4 years in prison – released after 120 days and given 5 years of probation
Aug. 29, 1998 – Convicted of 1st-degree burglary and stealing, sentenced to five years of probation
June 4, 2001 – Convicted of 1st-degree burglary, stealing and possession of drugs, sentenced to five years in prison but serves about two years
March 23, 2004 – Convicted of possessing drugs, sentenced to five years in prison, serves about three years
April 12, 2010 – convicted of 1st-degree burglary, sentenced to two years of probation
July 27, 2010 – charged with theft over $500, bonds out
Dec. 2, 2010 – failed to appear in court
Jan. 27, 2011 – charged with 2nd-degree burglary and stealing over $500, remains in custody in lieu of $10,000 bond
These are just two of the many criminals who spend their days and nights prowling for opportunities to steal from vehicles, home and businesses. They take away residents’ sense of security in their own home. We’re doing all we can at the police department to stop them and to keep them from walking the streets freely and victimizing more people.
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