Six suspects from serial breaking and entering ring arrested
Six people were arrested Wednesday in connection to what police are calling a serial burglary ring.
Warren Police Commissioner William Dwyer said a vehicle pursuit led Warren officers to Detroit where the six suspects were taken into custody after a standoff that lasted several hours.
Last month, Warren police responded to reports of a break-in at a business near Stephens and Ryan roads. Investigators obtained surveillance video showing three suspects arriving in a late model Ford pickup truck and forcing entry into the business with a pry bar. According to police, the suspects then fled the scene in the Ford.
“Warren investigators from the detective bureau and our special operations unit began working to identify the suspects and through collaboration with other law enforcement agencies learned that suspects matching the same description were involved in several other break-ins in the area,” said Dwyer.
Businesses in Troy, Clawson, Madison Heights, Harper Woods and Detroit were broken into by suspects driving the same vehicle that was used in the Warren incident.
“In addition to committing business break-ins, this group was responsible for high value retail theft and thefts of multiple vehicles,” said Dwyer.
On Feb. 8, officers from Warren’s special operations unit observed people from this suspected burglary ring breaking into a Family Dollar near Mack Avenue and Alter Road in Detroit and a tobacco shop in the area of East Warren Avenue and Chalmers Street in Detroit.
The suspects fled when Detroit police officers tried to take them into custody. Officers from Warren and Detroit pursued them to the Jefferson Square Apartment complex on Dickerson Avenue where they abandoned their vehicle and entered a residence.
After a standoff lasting for several hours, the suspects exited the residence and were arrested without incident. Police did not release information about the individual suspects.
“Warren investigators were able to work with other law enforcement agencies to learn that members of this organized group had been plaguing businesses in the tri-county area for months,” Dwyer said. “Many of the suspects involved in this group have previous convictions for theft-based crimes.”
Police believe this group of suspects is responsible for more than 40 separate theft-related crimes in Metro Detroit.
Warren is seeking felony charges against the suspects for the Jan. 2023 incident; several other police departments are seeking similar charges for events in their cities. Police expect there will be more arrests related to this alleged burglary ring.