Attempted burglary fails when suspect locks his keys in the getaway car
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A man suspected of burglarizing two Alaska businesses was delayed in his get-away by locking his keys in his car. A call to a cab company helped open the car but also led to his identification.
Surveillance video of the burglary and the taxi led police in North Pole, a city 14 miles south of Fairbanks, to seek a warrant for 27-year-old Joseph Michael Barria, who is suspected of stealing tools, stereo equipment and other property from a laundry and a fitness business.
The Jan. 6 video shows a man carrying items from the businesses into his car, then pulling his car closer to the door. Later, a cab arrives to help the man open the locked car.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"There's pretty good surveillance video there," said Steve Dutra, chief of the North Pole Police Department. The same surveillance system had been used in a kidnapping case. "It covers the entire parking lot and the highway," Dutra said.
From the cab company, police obtained Barria's cellphone number and name.
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports police recovered $3,500 worth of tools stolen from the laundry in the trunk of Barria's car.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Barria was not immediately arrested.
Prosecutors on Wednesday filed criminal charges of burglary while armed with a gun, felony theft and misdemeanor mischief charges. A Fairbanks judge issued a $10,000 warrant for Barria's arrest.
The surveillance video indicated Barria was carrying a handgun and Dutra urged caution in approaching him.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"We have no indication he's going to be hostile toward civilians, but yes, I would say, if he's sighted, please call local law enforcement," Dutra said.