Published: September 24, 2009 09:00 am      

BRANFORD, O’BRIEN RESIDENTS CHARGED IN VEHICLE BURGLARY RING

Two Branford residents have been arrested in connection with a burglary theft ring, according to a spokesman for the Columbia County Sheriff's Office. An arrest warrant is sought for an O'Brien man as well.

Arrested were Robert St Clair Jr., 18, of 607 Savannah St., and a 17-year-old Branford juvenile. An arrest warrant is sought for Jeremy W. Dunkin, 37, 11346 Brantly Road, O'Brien, according to Sgt. Edward Seifert, public information officer for CCSO.

The Columbia County Sheriff's Office has made several arrests stemming from a lengthy investigation into vehicle burglaries in Columbia County. Over the past six weeks, roughly 40 vehicles were burglarized. The suspects targeted residential neighborhoods in central Columbia County including, Wise Estates, Emerald Lakes, Callahan, Calloway, Forest Country, Mayfair, Woodcrest, Shady Oak and Piccadilly Park Subdivisions.

Columbia County authorities are working closely with the Suwannee County Sheriff's Office to determine if the arrested subjects are linked to burglaries in Suwannee County.

The suspects found some vehicles unlocked but also forced entry into several cars by breaking windows, said Seifert. Items stolen included GPS units, laptop computers, gaming consoles and CD/DVDs.

During the early morning hours of Sunday, the suspects were burglarizing a vehicle in the Calloway Subdivision, Seifert said, when the homeowner saw one of them inside her vehicle and notified authorities. Deputy Matt Grinstead and his K-9 partner, Zombie, tracked the suspects to a point where they left in a vehicle. Grinstead discovered that one of the suspects dropped a cell phone near the scene.

At about 4:45 a.m., CCSO received another call from the Calloway Subdivision that three male subjects were in a yard with a flashlight. Deputies responded again and were able to take two suspects into custody.

The three suspects will face approximately 40 charges of burglary, grand theft and dealing in stolen property, Seifert said.