Berkeley Man Busted For Allegedly Stealing Mail From Dozens Of Homes, Apartments
BERKELEY (CBS SF) - A 42-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of burglary and other offenses for allegedly stealing mail from an apartment building in Berkeley on Monday, police said.
A witness spotted a suspect entering a secured apartment building in the 1900 block of Delaware Street, near Martin Luther King Jr. Way and the North Berkeley Senior Center, at about 11:20 a.m. on Monday, according to police spokesman Officer Byron White.
The witness told police the suspect walked to the mailboxes in the building's lobby area, used a tool to open several mailboxes then stuffed the mail into a bag and walked off.
When officers responded to the apartment building they found the suspect, later identified as Alan Thrower of Berkeley, inside the parking garage carrying a bag full of stolen mail, White said.
After they reviewed surveillance footage, officers discovered that Thrower had broken into the building's lockbox and used the master key to gain access to the building, according to White.
When officers searched Thrower they found more than a gram of methamphetamine and several burglary tools, White said.
In addition, officers found mail from three different locations that was stolen from 60 different people, according to White.
In addition to burglary, Thrower was arrested on suspicion of violating his probation, possession of narcotics and several theft and identity theft offenses.
Thrower is being held at the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin in lieu of $1,000 bail and is scheduled to be arraigned on Friday.
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