Three men have been arrested and are facing charges after police said they are responsible for at least two car break-ins in southwest Miami-Dade.
Police said the suspects were on the lookout for unlocked vehicles. Around 3 a.m. Tuesday, one of the victims heard his garage door opening. When he ran outside, he made a horrible discovery.
"I noticed the light inside my car was on. Approached the car, the door was open, the trunk was open, my briefcase was gone. Everything was taken out of the glove box," the victim explained.
A briefcase and some mail, including a checkbook, were taken from the victim's trunk.
Just a few hours later, officers received a call from another victim who had his laptop stolen from his car. He reported a suspicious vehicle near the 8000 block of Southwest 96th Street.
"The units responded over there. They observed a white Mercedes with no headlights on and the engine running. As they attempted to conduct a traffic stop, the subjects fled but they were able to take them into custody," said Det. Antonio Llaneras with Miami-Dade Police.
Police said three men are behind the crimes: Emmanuel Thomas, Kionne Bell and Tavon Roundtree. Right now, all three men are facing charges of burglary to a vehicle and grand theft.
Local
One of the victims was thankful to be reunited with his possessions but said he learned his lesson about leaving his car unlocked and his garage clicker inside his vehicle.
"Lock the car, don't leave anything in the car. Don't forget that even though you like to live and believe that humanity is nice, there's people out there that are desperate," the victim said.
Police also have a message for car owners.
"We're urging the community to lock their vehicles and stuff because a lot of these people just go around checking door handles and then that's an easy target for them," Llaneras explained.
Police are investigating whether these suspects could be linked to even more car burglaries in the area. If you think you may have been a victim of theft, police are asking you to come forward.
