On 9-10-14, at about 6:10 PM, officers were sent to the parking lot of the Ross Rogers Golf Course at 722 NW 24th on a theft. Witnesses reported that a man took an air compressor from a pickup on the lot. The suspect placed the compressor into the trunk of a gray Cadillac. The compressor was so large that the suspect could not close the trunk of the car. He tried to drive out of the parking lot, but witnesses parked a vehicle in front of the exit to keep the suspect from driving away. The suspect drove over the curb and left. Witnesses followed him and watched him park the car near 19th and N. Washington before walking to a home in the 1600 block of N. Washington. Officers found Earman Eugene Gilbreath BM 59 at the home. He came out to speak to the officers. Witnesses identified him as the man that stole compressor. Officers recovered the compressor from the parked car and returned it to the owner. Gilbreath was booked into the Potter County Detention Center for burglary of a motor vehicle with two or more previous convictions, a state jail felony.
The Amarillo Police Department has investigated from 26 to 45 auto burglaries a week in the last month. The thieves break in by breaking glass, opening unlocked doors, prying open pickup bed tool boxes, or just taking things out of the bed of a pickup. Many of these auto burglaries happen on parking lots during daylight hours. Help the police department stop auto burglars by being alert for people that appear to be looking around in parking lots or stopping behind other cars briefly. Take everything out of your car when you leave it, or at least secure it in the trunk. Report suspicious vehicles to the Amarillo Police Department at 378-3038. If the crime is in progress, dial 911.
