Burglary suspect had alleged loot under bed

Police say arrest of 18-year-old solves six crimes

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Instead, in early April, officers found some of the burglary spoils closer to home, stuffed in black bags under the bed of an 18-year-old.

The cache of digital cameras, Palm Pilots, camcorders and laptops turned up in the bedroom of Carterrys Abednega Morgan of Waldorf and included items that were stolen in at least six of the break-ins, according to police.

Following the discovery, Morgan was charged with multiple counts of first-degree burglary and theft, but police are still investigating the extent of his alleged involvement in the crimes, said Diane Richardson, spokeswoman for the sheriff's office.

Investigators and patrol officers have done good work in the case so far, but "we have a ways to go in terms of identifying suspects," Richardson said.

She added that the burglars might have gone unnoticed because they were so bold they didn't arouse suspicion. Evidence indicates that at some of the break-ins the intruders didn't bring a car and simply carried the stolen property from the homes, according to Richardson.

"They walked in like they owned the place, and they just took the stuff," Richardson said.

The thieves probably sold many of the stolen goods by word of mouth instead of at pawn shops, she said.

Police believe about 30 Waldorf break-ins have been committed this year by the same people, according to Richardson. In February, the sheriff's office used Reverse 911, a new call system, to alert residents to the trend, and a month later the agency upped the reward for tips leading to arrests in the break-ins.

Morgan was a suspect in the burglaries for several weeks before his arrest, when a citizen tipped off sheriff's officers that the teen was involved in the crimes, according to court papers.

After Morgan was caught trying to break into a Tanglewood Drive residence April 3, investigators obtained the search warrant for his home, court records stated. A juvenile who was reportedly acting as a lookout for Morgan was also arrested in connection with the attempted break-in, court records show.

According to court documents, Morgan and the juvenile are members of the Cash Rulez gang. Richardson said that calling the group a gang is misleading and that it started with several fans of Cash Rulez, a go-go band.

"The fact they belonged to it has nothing to do with the break-ins," Richardson said.

Cindy Coleman, whose Tanglewood Drive home was burglarized March 16, reported losing nearly $13,000 worth of items in the theft, court records show.

"I felt violated by them breaking in and knowing they went through my things," Coleman said. The intruders kicked in her back door and took a digital camera, a global positioning system device, jewelry, cash and two cell phones, court records state.

Coleman said she returned from a quick errand to find that her home had been ransacked.

Weeks later, during the search of Morgan's room, police recovered Coleman's GPS and her daughter's cell phone, she said. However, Coleman said she's most upset about the thefts of some diamond and sapphire jewelry and a charm bracelet she's had since she was 13, items she doesn't expect to reclaim.

"I think they've already pawned it or sold it or done whatever they were going to do with it," Coleman said of the jewelry.

Morgan is charged with six counts of first-degree burglary, six counts of third-degree burglary, theft scheme of more than $500, six counts of theft of more than $500 and four counts of malicious destruction of property valued at less than $500. For the April 3 incident, he is charged with attempted first-degree burglary, attempted third-degree burglary and fourth-degree burglary.

Morgan's mother, Katrina Thompson, declined to comment on the charges.

In view of the burglaries and the likelihood that the stolen items are being sold, Richardson said the sheriff's office hopes that parents keep an eye on what their children are buying or bringing home.

brodgers@somdnews.com