Burglar Arrested After Owner Finds Her Jewelry In Local Store Window
Sonora, CA – A local woman, recently shocked by finding her own jewelry for sale at a downtown Sonora consignment store received closure today when police found and arrested the perpetrator.
According to Acting Sonora Police Chief Turu VanderWiel, the case stems from the victim’s sighting of her belongings while shopping on May. 8. As there had been no sign of forced entry at her residence and she had not noticed that about $2,500 worth of her jewelry was missing, the victim was not even aware that someone gained entrance, creeped into and then stole from her home.
“In general, the items taken were a collection of jewelry on a stand…and the entire stand with the jewelry on it was turned over to the store for consignment,” the chief recounts. The ensuing police investigation tracked the stolen goods’ consignment back to 51-year-old transient Paul Charles Janetakos and also confirmed that a burglary had indeed occurred.
Continuing, he reports, “Yesterday morning, one of our officers tried to make contact with the suspect, who tried to evade but was taken into custody on Stockton Road and booked into the Tuolumne County Jail for felony burglary and possession of stolen property.” According to the custody report he was assigned a $50,000 bail.
Sharing some takeaways from the incident, Chief VanderWiel states, “Ensure that your property is secure at all times and keep your homes locked and your valuables out of sight — find a good place to hide them and not leave them out where people can see them through the windows or through an open door if people come and talk to you at the door.” Too, he adds, “Sometimes, friends of friends tell people what you have — so keep [your valuable] things well-hidden.”
