With uptick in car burglaries, thefts across Washington County, police offer simple, logical solution

Stock image | Photo by pcess609/iStock/Getty Images Plus, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — Officers throughout Washington County have seen a surge in the number of vehicle burglaries in recent weeks following the arrest of a 19-year-old alleged car burglar.

Stock photo by Cody Blowers, St. George News

And one consistent theme officers continue to see is that most, if not all of the vehicles involved were left unlocked at the time of the theft.

The latest incident occurred Sunday when a patrol officer traveling in the area of Dixie Downs Road and Jefferson Street noticed two individuals walking southbound on Dixie Drive, one of whom matched the description of a suspect in a recent auto burglary case.

The suspect’s hooded sweatshirt “displayed a distinctive quote in a distinctive font,” which was a match to the hoodie worn by the individual suspected in a recent rash of vehicle burglaries.

The suspects were identified as Garrett Scott Devereaux, 19, and a juvenile.

A records check on the suspect indicated Devereaux had an active misdemeanor warrant for his arrest for retail theft and trespassing issued by Hurricane Justice Court in February.

The suspect was arrested and transported to Purgatory Correctional Facility and booked into jail facing four counts of burglary of a vehicle, two counts of theft and one count of criminal mischief – each a misdemeanor — as well as the warrant.

Officers recovered a backpack that matched the pack worn by a suspect during a string of car burglaries reported to police.

Inside the backpack were several sets of keys, a large amount of change and the change holders, “which had obviously been removed from some type of vehicle,” the officer wrote.

Officers recovered a folding knife that matched one item reported as stolen during a prior car break-in.

Stock image | Photo by Djedzura/iStock/Getty Images Plus, St. George News

While speaking to police, the suspect reportedly admitted to committing a series of vehicle burglaries in and around  Dixie Downs during the early morning hours of June 1 and that was why he had the multiple sets of keys.

He said he took approximately $40 in cash and change – money he said he had already spent during the time that elapsed between the burglaries and the arrest.

Officers learned the juvenile with Devereaux was an alleged accomplice and at times served as the “look-out” during a number of the car break-ins.

While the suspect was being booked into jail, an officer conducting a routine patrol on North Dixie Downs Road noticed a Saturn passenger car parked near the corner of 1200 North, which was the only street north of where officers had spotted Devereaux and the juvenile walking just prior to the arrest.

The officer ran the license plate that came back as stolen out of LaVerkin, which corresponded with the location information provided by the juvenile during an earlier interview with police, leading officers to suspect that both were involved in stealing the car.

Their suspicions were confirmed when a receipt was found on the driver’s side floorboard that had a shoeprint on it matching the tread on the shoes Devereaux was wearing. Devereaux was later charged with one second-degree felony count of receiving or transferring a stolen vehicle, along with three misdemeanor charges of possession of marijuana, paraphernalia and tobacco by a minor.

Additionally, the suspect was linked to an incident reported hours before his arrest when officers responded to a report of a vehicle burglary that occurred shortly after 7 a.m. in St. George. The incident involved a black pickup truck that was broken into while parked in the driveway of a residence.

Officers recovered surveillance footage that showed a suspect inside the cab of the truck, “looking around inside the vehicle, opening the center console and moving items inside,” and then watched as the suspect exited the vehicle without taking anything.

Four days later, officers learned that Devereaux was in jail following his arrest for multiple alleged vehicle burglaries reported in the surrounding area near where the pickup truck was broken into.

The officer noted that in Devereaux’s booking photo, he was wearing a brown sweater that matched the clothing the suspect was wearing in the video. The suspect also had a backpack at the time of his arrest that was booked into evidence.

The suspect was charged with one misdemeanor count of vehicle burglary in that case.

2019 file photo for illustrative purposes only of Santa Clara-Ivins Police units responding to a store in Santa Clara, Utah, Feb. 16, 2019 | Photo courtesy of Santa Clara-Ivins Police Department, St. George News

In all, Devereaux was formally charged with possession, as well as second-degree felony theft of a vehicle, along with five counts of vehicle burglary, two counts of theft and one count of destruction of property – each a misdemeanor.

Vehicle-related thefts increase in Washington County

Vehicle break-ins spike during warmer months, which is a well-established crime pattern that keeps officers busy from spring to the end of summer. This, despite the fact that many cars are now equipped with engine immobilizers, on-board vehicle recovery devices and sophisticated alarm systems that have become standard.

But even so, the numbers continue to climb year after year.

St. George Police Officer Tiffany Mitchell said there has been a spike in the number of vehicle burglaries across the city, and the west side of St. George appears to be one of the areas in St. George that is hardest hit.

She said it is common for suspects to zero in on vehicles that are unlocked, which is evidenced by security footage pulled by police that often shows suspects pulling door handles as they walk along the street or through parking lots.

The same holds true for the recent rash of reports, she said, since a majority of the incidents involved vehicles that were unlocked when they were rifled through.

“Once the suspect realizes that the car is locked, they continue to the next vehicle — until they find one that is unlocked — making these crimes of opportunity.”

Criminals also target vehicles parked for extended periods of time where there is little foot traffic, making it less likely their illegal activities will be noticed. This usually involves vehicles parked at trailheads, gyms, sports parks or other areas where the owners are away from the vehicle and occupied with other activities.

The Washington City Police Department is also seeing a spike in vehicle break-ins, similar to what has been seen in St. George, Washington City Police Lt. Kory Klotz told St. George News.

The same holds true for the Santa Clara-Ivins Police Department, which is seeing an uptick in vehicle-related thefts, including one report of a vehicle burglary that led to the recovery of two stolen vehicles that were taken in unrelated incidents, according to a statement posted on the department’s Facebook page. 

In fact, on Monday, officers responded to a stolen vehicle report and during a canvass of the neighborhood, they spoke to several residents, including one homeowner who said one of their neighbor’s vehicles had recently been taken. 

Officers “caught a break,” the statement said, when they discovered that the vehicle was equipped with a GPS tracking device, and with the help of the Washington County Sheriff’s deputies, it was tracked to an area in St. George where it was recovered by police. 

While investigators were processing the scene in St. George, officers located the vehicle the suspects were driving, which turned out to be the Saturn passenger car reportedly stolen near Washington City and later linked to the Devereaux arrest. The two vehicles were returned to the rightful owners. 

Authorities in Santa Clara also found that both vehicles were unlocked with the keys inside at the time they were stolen,  prompting a warning for residents:  “Please lock your doors and remove all valuables.” 

It was the recent spike in local vehicle-related thefts that prompted Officer Dan Raddatz with the Hurricane City Police Department to post a statement on social media as well.

Last weekend, the department said, officers were busy investigating multiple vehicle break-ins, including five at one apartment complex, Raddatz noted in the recent appeal to the community. Hurricane is not alone, as other law enforcement agencies throughout Washington County are also seeing an uptick in the number of cars not only being broken into but stolen.

There was one consistent theme mentioned in all of the reports: “None of the vehicles had to be broken into, they were simply opened as they had been left unlocked.” 

Being proactive is key, Raddatz said, in eliminating these opportunistic crimes by establishing a routine to ensure their vehicles are locked anytime they are unoccupied, which holds true for the home and other property. 

Vehicle-related thefts — a multi-billion-dollar business 

According to a report recently released by the National Insurance Crime Bureau, vehicle theft has skyrocketed across the United States, with more than 930,000 vehicles reported as stolen across the country in 2021. That’s one car stolen every 39 seconds.

These numbers didn’t get any better last year. In the first three months of 2022, nearly a quarter million vehicle thefts were reported, and by the end of last year, that number had risen to nearly 1.1 million, the crime bureau report says.

Moreover, roughly half of those thefts were due to driver error, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says, and vehicle theft has become a multi-billion-dollar crime, costing vehicle owners more than $8 billion in 2022.

Safety experts at the National Insurance Crime Bureau provided the following recommendation; “Lock your car, take your keys, no matter where you live.”

This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.

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