JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A pair of brothers suspected of burglarizing unlocked cars were behind bars Friday after a recent rash of unlocked car burglaries, police said.
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, "an outstanding citizen stepped up and called police" around 4:30 a.m. Friday from the Highland Lakes Subdivision near Argyle Forest. Within minutes, police attempted to stop Christian and Justin Vaughn in connection with the burglaries.
Police said they went after unlocked cars because they didn't want to cause damage or make noise. If the door was locked, officers said they moved on to the next one, taking everything they could get their hands on.
Police detained Christian Vaughn, but his brother, Justin Vaughn, took off running and thanks to the help of JSO K-9 units, he was tracked to a shed in a fenced-in backyard.
Officials said both brothers were found with bags of stolen property, including a loaded firearm, two knives, cash and security cards that they had taken from multiple cars that morning.
Police said that Deanna Smith's was one of the victims who was hit after leaving her car unlocked and the brothers took spare keys, change and a pocket knife.
"Yeah, we used to sleep with our doors unlocked and now we don't. We lock our glass door, we deadbolt our front door. Our car doors were left unlocked and now they're not," Deanna Smith said.
After the rash of burglaries the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office is once again reminding residents to lock their car doors. JSO also cited statistics that said that 59 percent of guns stolen from vehicles were in unlocked cars, and those guns have been used to commit crime in Jacksonville.
A statement posted on JSO's Facebook page read:
"You see, they do not like to make noise or draw attention to themselves, so if your doors are locked, they move on to the next one."
Police said that in an interview after the brothers' arrest, Christian Vaughn said he was home on summer break from FAMU, where he is majoring in engineering, and admitted to performing the burglaries Friday morning.
Police said Justin Vaughn not only confessed to the early morning burglary, but also confessed to burglarizing unlocked vehicles over the last four months, including burglaries in the Longhorn subdivision where two handguns were stolen.
News4JAX crime and safety analyst Gil Smith said that in addition to locking your doors, keep a record of your valuables.
"Any time you buy a big ticket item, write down the serial number. Keep it online, on the computer, or just have a hard copy. Write down the model and serial number. That is extremely important," Smith said.
According to officials, Justin Vaughn is expected to be charged with over 77 counts of auto burglary over the next week.