The teens admitted stealing more than a dozen items from the properties including lawn maintenance equipment and electronic goods, according to a Vandalia police report.
“I didn’t always lock my shed, but I’ve learned my lesson,” said Dennis Stankus, who had a leaf blower, power drill and battery charger stolen from a shed behind his apartment complex on Kenbrook Drive. “Hopefully they’ve learned a lesson, and they are young enough that they can straighten out.”
Lowe told police the teenagers “were walking around stealing things from sheds and bringing the stolen items to him,” according to the report.
He said he paid the teens a “minimal amount” for each item and then pawned the items at a store in Vandalia and keep the cash for profit, the report said. Lowe also said the teens used their portion of the money to purchase drugs from “a kid down the street.”
Jonathan Thompson,a property manager for two apartment complexes on Kenbrook, said the burglaries have him on high alert for his facilities, which are under renovation.
“I’ve installed security cameras, re-did the locks,” Thompson said. “ We don’t want vandals to come in and destroy it.”
Lowe, is scheduled to appear in Vandalia Municipal Court Thursday for his arraignment. He was previously found guilty of trespassing and ordered to 30 days in jail in October 2012. He was on probation for a year and ordered to stay off the property of four addresses on Kenbrook, according to court records.
He is charged with at least one count of receiving stolen property in the most recent case.
The teens’ case has been turned over to the Montgomery County Juvenile Court.
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