Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Escondido Target thieves recognized

The loaded-cart relay

Crews, center; attorney Fleming, right
Crews, center; attorney Fleming, right

A witness identified as Arturo said he was the loss prevention officer for the Target store on Auto Park Way in Escondido, on September 16. Arturo said it was before noon that day that he noticed suspicious behavior, which he had learned to recognize during five years work in security.

Arturo said he saw one person select a large quantity of movies, on Blu-ray and 4K DVDs, and that man put the discs into a lidded, black laundry hamper; the hamper was in a shopping cart along with some new towels and bath mats. That person then wheeled the cart to a second person in the men’s department, the two men exchanged carts, the first man took away an empty cart. The second man pushed the loaded cart to the front of the store, where a third man entered and within seconds took control of the bountiful cart and wheeled it outside.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Escondido police officer Joseph Putulowski said he got a radio call with a description of suspects inside a black Jeep get-away car. Officer Putulowski was patrolling nearby and made a U-turn to get behind a suspect vehicle and confirm the license plates.

Michael Anthony Crews Sr., 58, was driving that rented Jeep, according to officer Putulowski’s testimony. Crews was identified by one witness as the second man in the loaded-cart-relay scheme.

The stolen goods were recovered from the back of the Jeep. The loot value totaled more than $3,000, according to a Target employee.

Defense attorney Michael Fleming asserted that there was no evidence that defendant Crews ever saw or touched the most valuable items, all the movie discs. And, “He may not have known what the other man was up to.”

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Birdwatching bonanza, earliest sunset of the year, bulb planting time

Venus shines its brightest
Next Article

Chunky yellowtail from Alijos Rocks

Imperial Beach Pier thresher shark
Crews, center; attorney Fleming, right
Crews, center; attorney Fleming, right

A witness identified as Arturo said he was the loss prevention officer for the Target store on Auto Park Way in Escondido, on September 16. Arturo said it was before noon that day that he noticed suspicious behavior, which he had learned to recognize during five years work in security.

Arturo said he saw one person select a large quantity of movies, on Blu-ray and 4K DVDs, and that man put the discs into a lidded, black laundry hamper; the hamper was in a shopping cart along with some new towels and bath mats. That person then wheeled the cart to a second person in the men’s department, the two men exchanged carts, the first man took away an empty cart. The second man pushed the loaded cart to the front of the store, where a third man entered and within seconds took control of the bountiful cart and wheeled it outside.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Escondido police officer Joseph Putulowski said he got a radio call with a description of suspects inside a black Jeep get-away car. Officer Putulowski was patrolling nearby and made a U-turn to get behind a suspect vehicle and confirm the license plates.

Michael Anthony Crews Sr., 58, was driving that rented Jeep, according to officer Putulowski’s testimony. Crews was identified by one witness as the second man in the loaded-cart-relay scheme.

The stolen goods were recovered from the back of the Jeep. The loot value totaled more than $3,000, according to a Target employee.

Defense attorney Michael Fleming asserted that there was no evidence that defendant Crews ever saw or touched the most valuable items, all the movie discs. And, “He may not have known what the other man was up to.”

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego Holiday Experiences

As soon as Halloween is over, it's Christmas time in my mind
Next Article

Colorado governor Polis’ days in La Jolla canyons

Why Kamala might not run for Calif. governor
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader