Deputies Catch Vehicle Burglary Suspect
On 12-18-15 just after 5:30 a.m., Hernando County deputies responded to the 7300 block of Blackhawk Trail in Spring Hill regarding a Vehicle Burglary in progress.
A victim reported observing a male enter her vehicle and was able to provide dispatchers with a description of the male.
Soon after arriving on scene, deputies located the suspect hiding behind a vehicle (that he had just burglarized) at a residence on Cherokee Trail. The suspect was identified as James Goncalves.
The victim that observed a male enter her vehicle a short time earlier was able to positively identify Goncalves as the suspect.
Goncalves was placed into custody and transported to the Hernando County Sheriff’s District Two Office for questioning.
Goncalves denied having any involvement with the crime(s) and was uncooperative with the investigation. He was unable to explain why he was in possession of stolen properly linked to several of the Vehicle Burglaries. Additionally, video surveillance from the area captured Goncalves committing the burglaries, which he was also unable to explain.
Each vehicle that Goncalves burglarized was UNLOCKED. Items targeted were loose change, small electronics, and even a FIREARM. At this time all items have been recovered except for the firearm.
James Goncalves W/M DOB/08-18-1993 was arrested by detectives and charged as follows:
• Burglary Conveyance (11 counts)
• Burglary Conveyance Armed
• Burglary Conveyance – Attempted (2 counts)
• VOP
• Possession of Marijuana under 20 Grams.
At the time of this writing, additional calls for service were still being received and handled. Additional charges may be pending.
A bait car may or may not have been utilized in this operation.
Reminder…..
Vehicle burglary is often a crime of opportunity. We find that the vast majority of the vehicles that get burglarized have unlocked doors. There are several things YOU can do to deter a thief from targeting YOUR vehicle:
– ALWAYS lock your vehicle when you leave it, even if you will only be away from it for a short time.
– NEVER leave valuables in your vehicle (i.e., iPods, cell phones, computers, purses, etc).
– Do not leave loose change in your vehicle.
– NEVER leave a firearm in your vehicle. (If a thief gets your firearm, he/she is now armed and a greater threat to the community. This is especially true for the deputy that approaches that now-armed criminal.)
– If you have room in the garage, put the vehicle(s) in the garage (remove the temptation).
– Consider placing a RELIABLE alarm on vehicle(s) and be sure to activate the alarm each time you leave the vehicle.
