(Published Tuesday, October 9, 2007 03:03:23 PM CST;
updated Wednesday, October 10, 2007 11:24:49 AM CST)
A d v e r t i s e m e n t
By Mike DuPre' mdupre@gazetteextra.com
ROCK COUNTY-A victim's report of a license plate number and car color was the first clue that led investigators in Rock and Walworth counties to two suspects arrested Tuesday in connection with some three dozen burglaries.
Rock County deputies arrested two men Tuesday afternoon on initial charges of burglary and misdemeanor, one each for Brian J. Conaway, 40, of 2115 Schaller St., Janesville, and James G. Brereton, 41, of 4208 N. West River Road, Janesville.
No weapons or drugs were found when the two were arrested without incident near ShopKo on Highway 14 in Janesville, Rock County Sheriff Bob Spoden said.
The charges stem from a burglary deputies found about 12:30 p.m. Tuesday on Stark Road in Janesville Township.
Investigators think the two are responsible for most, if not all, of about three dozen daytime rural residential break-ins in Rock and Walworth counties since mid-August, Spoden said this morning.
"We believe they are involved in a majority of these burglaries," Spoden said. "There may be some random burglaries committed by other individuals, but the items taken, the method of entry-knock and kick in the door-and the time of day all were indicative of these suspects we now have in custody. …
"At this time, we believe they are the only two involved, but the investigation is ongoing, and we're going to look at any other possible suspects."
The burglars would knock on doors, and if no one answered, they would kick in the doors and snatch items easily grabbed such as electronic devices and money. If someone answered the door, they would offer a lame excuse as to why they were there, Spoden said.
A female victim in Walworth County noted the license plate number of what Spoden described as a teal-bluish, older car. Investigators ran the plate through their computer systems and found that officers had made traffic stops on the car when Conaway and Brereton were in it, Spoden said.
Investigators found they had criminal records.
Deputies and detectives started to keep tabs on the car, and deputies saturated rural areas along the Rock-Walworth county line.
Officers followed the car Monday night, when investigators thought the two suspects were casing homes in the Stark Road area for possible break-ins.
On Tuesday, the car and suspects returned to the area and stopped briefly at a home. After they left, deputies went to the house and found the front door kicked in. They notified other deputies and detectives who stopped the car, Spoden said.
When Conaway and Brereton were ordered from the car with their hands up, Conaway had his fists clenched. Ordered to open his hands, Conaway dropped $100 bills to the ground, Spoden said.
The cash and electronics found in the car were stolen from the Stark Road home, the sheriff said.
"We weren't certain they were going to stop (at a home)," Spoden said of deputies hanging back as they followed the car. "Our goal was to keep them under surveillance without giving away our presence. We wanted to confirm a crime before making an arrest."
