Primary navigation
15660 N Dallas Parkway #800, Dallas, TX 75248
Toll-Free: (800) 311-2656
Phone: (972) 361-0900
Fax: (972) 361-0901
tcpalm.com
Pawn database leads Port St. Lucie police to man accused of selling stolen merchandise
By Will Greenlee
January 14, 2011
PORT ST. LUCIE – Police researching a stolen sapphire in a pawn transaction database were led to a Port St. Lucie man who wound up telling investigators he'd burglarized nine homes, according to records released Friday and a police spokesman.
Officer Tom Nichols, police spokesman, said police learned George Brown, 22, had pawned the sapphire — along with a large number of other items over the past several months — while reviewing records through Leads Online, a nationwide database of pawn transactions.
"He's pawned over $4,000 worth of stolen merchandise," Nichols said.
Investigators spoke to Brown's father, who accused Brown of stealing from him, and put investigators in touch with Brown, Nichols said. Brown, of the 500 block of Northwest Sherbrook Avenue in Port St. Lucie, reportedly told police he'd burglarized nine homes.
Police Detective Chris D'Angelo arrested Brown Thursday in connection with burglaries to homes in the 600 block of Northwest Grenada Street and the 600 block of Southwest Dwyer Street. Police anticipate filing charges against Brown in connection with additional burglaries, Nichols said.
Nichols said Brown has a "drug problem" and suspected he was committing burglaries to support his habit.
Nichols said Brown said he'd sold some items to a man he found on Craigslist, a popular Internet classified site. That man, identified as Dino Ortega, 50, was arrested Thursday by St. Lucie County Sheriff's investigators on more than two dozen misdemeanor charges.
Police in Vero Beach and Port St. Lucie told St. Lucie sheriff's officials that suspects said they'd sold gold to "Dino," who operates a gold buying business from his home in the 2400 block of Southeast Caligula Avenue in Port St. Lucie. Ortega is listed as a licensed secondhand dealer.
Sheriff's investigators found several transactions that Ortega did not report within 24 hours of sale as required.