Officers arrested a man tied to eight different burglaries in the Bloomington area at about 1 a.m. Tuesday, Capt. Joe Qualters said.
David Z. Davis, 28, was arrested in the Burger King parking lot on South Walnut Street for burglary of Great Taste Buffet on Dec. 17 and 29, 2014 and Jan. 11. He was also connected to a burglary at Nail Studio on Jan. 25, Cirilla’s on Jan. 25, Euro Deli on Jan. 26, Big League Haircuts on Jan. 26 and Crimson Nail and Spa on Jan. 26.
Early Tuesday morning officers encountered a tan Chevy Trailblazer in the Burger King parking lot. The suspicious vehicle fit a description that had been obtained from surveillance videos from one of the previous burglaries.
Davis was occupying the vehicle when police arrived. The officers determined that Davis did not own the vehicle and he claimed not to know the owner. Officers attempted to contact the registered owner but were unsuccessful. As a result, the vehicle was impounded.
A crack pipe was also found in the vehicle. Officers questioned Davis about the pipe and the burglaries.
While being questioned, Davis told the officers he would speak to investigators and was interviewed by a detective at the Bloomington Police Department. He then admitted to his involvement in the eight burglaries.
Qualters attributed the success of this arrest to the department’s crime analysis.
The analysis team looks for patterns in cases to determine if they could be related.
In this particular instance, the burglaries were nearly identical and included similar details such as targeting small businesses, stealing petty cash, forced entry to a rear door or front glass door and occurrence during the overnight hours.
Qualters also said a better communication with officers about the information of the cases and the vehicle description helped them to approach the situation.
“From this available information, the officers involved did an excellent job of being aware of what to look for and then following up on it once the suspicious vehicle was located,” Qualters said.
The investigation into the burglaries is ongoing.
Alison Graham
