Boat company uses Craigslist and cops to retrieve stolen boats
By IBI Magazine
A boat company in Wake Forest, North Carolina, used the sales website Craigslist to retrieve stolen property. Paddle Creek lost more than US$1,000 in boats and equipment when thieves hit their facilities. Bob Doty, Paddle Creek's manager, said his boss figured that if the thieves planned to sell the boats, he could find them online. He saw them on Craigslist a few hours after the theft, and notified police. The police set up a sting operation, and asked Doty to meet the sellers in the parking lot of a remote gas station. Police gave him marked bills to make the transaction. "I knew right away it was ours. It still had the Paddle Creek sticker on it," Doty told local station WRAL. A swarm of policemen, guns drawn, surrounded the two men who had come to sell the boat. "They rolled in and took them down," Doty said. "They were pretty surprised. I do not think they expected it." Garrett Michael Whitt, 22, and Zachary David Harris, 21, were taken into custody, and have been charged with larceny, breaking and entering, conspiracy, possession of stolen goods and receiving stolen goods. Whitt has previous convictions for selling drugs, felony weapons charges and breaking and entering. Harris told police that they had other stolen property in a rented storage unit and were selling it through Craigslist. Paddle Creek got its boats back. Police searched an e-mail account used by the suspects. They believe it could lead to more stolen property.
(2 December 2010)
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