Fifteen culprits arrested in over 65 thefts since July

A rash of home and vehicle burglaries across the Tooele Valley in recent months have law enforcement scrambling to figure out why the crime is suddenly on the rise.

In Tooele City alone, police have connected three unrelated groups to over 60 burglaries scattered throughout the city.

“It’s pretty random,” said Detective James May, with the Tooele City Police Department. “They just go to a certain neighborhood one night and the next night they hit another.”

May said during July and August a group of five people hit 17 unlocked residential garages, stealing everything from tools to electronics.

“They stole mostly larger stuff that they could pawn,” May said.

The group, all Tooele residents, fled to Colorado in September shortly after being identified by police. Warrants were issued for their arrest and they were later tracked down in three different Colorado cities and taken into custody by local police.

Glenn Nash, 20, and two juveniles are still awaiting extradition back to Tooele, but Chid Murphy, 31, and Jimmy Kay Murphy, 32, a husband/wife pair, have already been brought back and are being held in the Tooele County Jail on a $50,000 bond.

The group of five was charged with second-degree felony burglary and theft by receiving stolen property — also a second-degree felony.

Earlier this month, another group made up of four Tooele juveniles was apprehended in connection with roughly 11 vehicle burglaries and two garage burglaries.

The teens stole iPods, cameras, cigarettes and even loose change, according to May. They were all arrested on burglary charges and the cases have been referred to juvenile court.

Last week, another group of four was linked to nearly 30 vehicle, storage unit and garage burglaries. Jeromy Jackson, Joseph Aragon, Courtney Cooke, and another individual, whose name has not yet been released by police, were arrested and booked into the Tooele County Jail on charges of burglary and theft by receiving stolen property.

Although the three groups aren’t connected, May said, they all targeted unlocked vehicles and garages during the night.

The investigations on all three groups are still ongoing. May said further investigation could link these groups to other unresolved burglaries throughout the city.

More rural areas in the county have been hit with a spree of burglaries recently as well.

In early September, a husband/wife duo was nabbed by police in connection with a year-long string of home and business burglaries in Grantsville.

Richard Pettley, 39, of Grantsville, was arrested after Grantsville City police received a tip from a Grantsville resident who believed Pettley had sold her a stolen computer, according to Detective Dan Chamberlain of the Grantsville City Police Department.

Officers executed search warrants at two Clark Street trailer homes owned by Pettley and found computer equipment, a variety of tools and other valuables that were determined to be stolen from five residences and a commercial and industrial supply warehouse.

Police arrested Pettley’s wife, Virginia Cordova, 34, in connection with the burglaries as well.

Chamberlain said the arrest of Pettley and Cordova resolved most of the town’s outstanding burglary cases. However, some burglaries still remain unsolved.

The Tooele County Sheriff’s Office is continually battling burglary crimes as well, although the cases have been fewer in number and scattered over a larger area.

“A huge majority of our burglaries are vehicle burglaries,” said Lt. Lynn Bush, of the Tooele County Sheriff’s Office. “In the last month we’ve had a few in Wendover, a few in Stansbury and in Erda. Our investigators are always looking at these types of crimes.”

The Crime in Utah 2007 preliminary report complied by the Utah Department of Public Safety states that burglary is one of the fastest growing property crimes in Tooele County — seeing a 14 percent increase from the previous year.

Police aren’t sure what causes burglary to spike up, but believe it’s mostly fueled by people looking for easy money, said Lt. Paul Wimmer of the Tooele City Police Department. Wimmer said now, more than ever, residents should take preventative measures to avoid becoming a victim.

“It would be highly suggested that people locked up their cars as well as their garages,” Wimmer said.

Jamie Belnap: jamieb@tooeletranscript.com