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Police nab suspect who left cell phone behind
A Minnesota man recently was arrested in connection with a jewelry store robbery after he left behind one vital piece of evidence that led police right to him -- his cell phone.
Minneapolis--A Minnesota man recently was arrested in connection with a jewelry store robbery after he left behind one vital piece of evidence that led police right to him--his cell phone.
According to the Sun Current, the 23-year-old suspect, whose identity is not being released at this time, was arrested on June 16 after the police tracked him down through contacts listed in his phone.
Just three days earlier, police had responded to an alarm at Wixon Jewelers in Minneapolis.
When the officers arrived, they noticed there was damage to the roof as well an open window on the building’s north side, but there was no one in the shop when they were let in, Bloomington Police Cmdr. Jim Ryan told the news website.
Wixon reported that a gold watch and bags of unsorted jewels, which contained links for Rolex watches as well as a diamond ring valued at $10,000 inside, were missing from their office.
However, a white cellphone was found on a desk next to the open window and, since it did not belong to any of the store employees, it was taken as evidence.
Once investigators received a warrant to search the contents of the phone, they discovered the number of a parole officer.
When they contacted the officer, he told them that the suspect connected to the phone was on parole -- he had served 29 months for aggravated first-degree robbery and had eight months of parole remaining--and that he lived with his mother. The parole officer also was able to provide the phone number of the mother, who was listed on the cell phone under “Mom.”
They conducted a search of the residence the suspect shared with his mother and found clothing and gloves that matched those of the perpetrators of the burglary--the man who left his cell phone behind and one other suspect who was at the scene of the crime but has not been arrested.
According to the Sun Current, some of the jewelry stolen from Wixon Jewelers has been recovered after a separate duo, an older man and woman, tried to sell it at a local pawn shop. The pair are cooperating and have not been charged in the case, police said.
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