CHARLOTTE — Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police call it a serious threat to public safety. They say more than 230 guns have been stolen from vehicles across Charlotte. Now, they’re hoping new technology will help them track down the suspects.
Officers set up bait phones inside an undercover vehicle along South Tryon Street. They say it didn’t take long for a suspect to break into the car and steal it.
“A few hours after deploying that vehicle, we were getting tamper alerts, our bike officers responded to the alert. We were getting fed live information of video and pictures of the suspect that entered the car and took the device,” says Captain Bret Balamucki, with CMPD.
CMPD says Dennis Rann was holding the bait phone when police nabbed him. Rann has been arrested 11 times since 2019, 7 of those cases were larceny from vehicles.
A reminder from CMPD:
Keep your car doors locked, don’t leave guns inside your vehicle – keep them locked away at home, and always remove all valuables out of your vehicles.
Gloss