Suspect believed to be victim’s own son
By Jon Johnson
SAFFORD – A brazen burglary early Friday morning by a prowler who struck while the occupant slept in her bed may have been done by a relative of the victim.
Officers were dispatched at about 12:36 a.m. to a residence on Cherokee Lane regarding a home invasion burglary. Upon arrival, the victim was located secured in her bedroom.
The victim said she had been asleep when she heard a noise from the living room. As she inspected the noise, she saw a flashlight coming from the same area and called County Dispatch.
The victim’s home alarm was tripped and Valley Security also called County Dispatch. The victim said after the alarm went off, she heard someone leave through the back door. She then followed the dispatcher’s advice by unlocking the front door and locking herself in her bedroom to await the arrival of the police.
Upon inspection, the victim said it appeared that her purse had been rummaged through and she was missing $100 from her wallet but nothing else. She told officers that she had no idea how the burglar knew where her purse was or why only her cash was taken.
Officers located a broken window in the living room/kitchen area that appeared to be the point of entry and found a shoe print on a cooler located under the window and the same shoe print on a couch. The same shoe prints were also located leaving the residence and into a cotton field and down Union Canal Road.
Relatives of the victim arrived at the residence and advised that the prowler may have been her son, who was possibly abusing illicit drugs. The relative advised the victim’s son lived in the Safford RV Park at 2075 Golf Course Road.
Authorities located the same tracks leaving Union Canal Road near the 1900 block of 20th Avenue that appeared to lead to Golf Course Road near the Safford RV Park.
The case was forwarded to investigations. The perpetrator is facing possible charges of burglary and criminal damage.
