Serial burglar went undetected by selling loot to coin stores

contrib Sean D. Upchurch is accused of stealing $500,000 in jewelry, laptops, guns and other items.

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By Doug Page, Staff Writer Updated 10:58 PM Friday, June 10, 2011

DAYTON — A burglar accused of breaking into 37 area homes unloaded stolen gold and silver jewelry at area coin shops with no questions asked, according to police.

While the state regulates pawn shops and has some reporting requirements for precious metal dealers, second-hand stores, coin shops, flea markets and most jewelry stores are exempt from any regulations.

Pawn shop owners want that changed. “Anyone who advertises or promotes the purchase of precious metals should be licensed and follow the same requirements as pawn shops,” said Lou Tansky, president of the Ohio Pawnbrokers Association.

The state requires a pawn shop to record a description of the item purchase, the name, address and date of birth of the seller from the seller’s state identification. All of this information is turned over to the local police department, and the pawn shop is required to hold the item for 15 days to give police time to check whether the item has been reported stolen.

“Only a stupid thief brings something to a pawn shop,” said Ric Blum of Ohio Loan Co., 3028 N. Salem. “Is a thief going to bring something into a place where they will ask for his ID, or is he going down the street where he gets his money, no questions asked?”

The Dayton Daily News first wrote about this in December when Oakwood and Kettering police departments saw a spike in home burglaries where jewelry was stolen.

Police believe that spike can be attributed to Sean Upchurch, 40, who remains in the Montgomery County Jail on $255,000 bail after being indicted on 55 counts, including 37 counts of burglary of homes in Oakwood, Kettering, Dayton, Centerville, Butler Twp., Miamisburg and Clayton.

“We recovered a significant amount of receipts showing (Upchurch) sold gold, silver and miscellaneous jewelry to three area (coin) stores,” Oakwood Police Capt. Alan Hill said.

Blum was not surprised Upchurch unloaded his ill-gotten gains in that manner. Without regulations, a stolen ring can be melted down within five minutes of the transaction. “Or they can go to a flea market and trade that ring for a watch or cash, no questions asked,” he said.

Upchurch was arrested Easter Sunday not far from an Oakwood home where a burglar attempted to enter. The arrest led to a Harrison Twp. storage unit where police found 3,000 to 4,000 pieces of jewelry. Police said Upchurch’s six-month burglary spree supported his heroin habit and then some.

Detective Mark Scott, Dayton’s one-man pawn shop squad, said the area’s 13 pawn shops have been a lynch pin in the department’s recovery of stolen goods. “We have a good working rapport. They get suspicious, they call,” he said. Plus, every transaction ends up on Scott’s desk or in his computer. He cross references the serial numbers of stolen goods with items pawned or sold in the city’s pawn shops.

Crossroads Coin Inc. of Vandalia operates with a precious metals dealer’s license and was not involved with Upchurch.

“To start with, merchandise doesn’t come in with ‘stolen’ written on it,” said Bart Reames of Crossroads. “We require ID, write a description of the item and have the seller sign a statement attesting the item belongs to them.”

Unlike pawn shops, precious metals dealers are required to hold the item for five days. But like pawn shops, those receipts go to local police.

“The system works,” Reames said. “We’ve been able to recover items. And if it is too late, police have a name to work with.”

With the price of gold at more than $1,400 an ounce, it seems as if every storefront is willing to buy.

Driving up Dayton’s North Main Street, pawnbroker Blum counted four shops buying gold, including a Marathon gas station.

And none of them are covered by state law. Which means a thief can trade his or her stolen goods for cash with no questions asked, probably at a price far lower than they could get from a pawn shop, Blum said.

“Pawn shops are one of the most regulated industries in the state,” Tansky said.

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