HAVRE DE GRACE, Md. — Caught on camera---images of masked suspects dressed in dark clothing stealing a Dodge Charger in Bulle Rock before they were interrupted trying to nab a high-end Dodge pickup and fired shots at its owner during their getaway.
Major Joseph Alton of the Havre de Grace police says investigators now believe the suspects are part of a professional car theft ring.
“We have obviously determined that in fact, yes, it is some individuals that are connected to some other cases with allied partners throughout the region,” confirmed Alton.
The criminals from out of state used stolen vehicles to move around and targeted high-end vehicles near Interstate 95 so they could make quick getaways.
If they thought hitting a gated community in a relatively small city would make for an easy grab, they thought wrong, and investigators are using some high-tech means to help identify some of the suspects.
“Share databases, share information, share intelligence,” explained Alton, “and so through that process, we’ve been able to obviously connect a few dots throughout the map and then put together what is looking to be a pretty big case.”
Of course, this rises above simple property crimes, since in addition to taking a vehicle, the suspects also tried to take a life raising the stakes with an attempted murder.
“Was there any evidence they’d ever fired on anyone or shown a propensity for violence before?” we asked Alton.
“So again, I’m going to say that’s wrapped into the investigation, and I don’t want to disclose things that are going to injure somebody else’s case,” he replied.
