Police in Prince George’s County, Maryland, took to the skies to find $1 million in stolen equipment hidden on a plot of land in the county.
Capt. Craig Winegardner, with the Prince George’s County Police Department, told WTOP that police had multiple reports of stolen construction equipment from local farms and businesses and, thanks to a GPS device, tracked it back to a property in the 4400 block of Wheeler Road.
Police then used a helicopter to get a view of the land from above and found an adjacent property with just what they were looking for: Several stolen Bobcat trailers and other equipment.
“When we first saw it, it was overwhelming,” Winegardner said. “We did not expect to see that sort of stockpile of stolen equipment at all.”
The helicopter flew lower, and the detective was able to tell from the air, “the things that we knew were reported stolen, that were there,” Winegardner said, adding, “We were quite shocked.”
Police got a search warrant and searched the property and eventually found 13 stolen skid steers, two excavators, numerous trailers and building equipment.
They arrested 38-year-old Brandyn Green and charged him with conducting a theft scheme of over $100,000 and multiple felony theft charges.
Police said additional charges are likely.
Winegardner said the construction equipment was stolen from “mom and pop operations,” not big corporations.
“It feels great to locate these and give them back to the rightful owners,” he said.
Winegardner also offered a tip to local farms and residents looking to prevent this from happening.
“Make sure that things aren’t accessible to criminals overnight. Make it hard, if not impossible, to steal your valuable equipment, and make sure to track all of your VIN numbers and serial numbers.”
Also, he said GPS tracking and cameras can add an extra layer of security for larger equipment.
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