Spring2021_SSCWN_web

More and
More
Video
Victories
CRIMES FROM THE ARCHIVES!
Thank you, JJ Jakubowski for sending in this file from the
June 2007 issue of Self Serve Car Wash News. Although
these stories are 14 years old, the criminals are still dumb.
It is
getting to be a real phenomenon — carwash
video security systems proving to be the key
to busting bad guys and solving a number of
aggravating problems. The more reports of
success we hear and share, the more video
systems are being installed ... and then even
more reports of success are shared. It is a
“vicious cycle” , but only for the perps on the
wrong side of the lens. We’ve printed some
already on previous pages of this issue’s
Industry News column, but here are a few
more examples:
■ In Lehigh Acres, Florida, Rod Willis
owner of the Gator Carwash, got a new IBA
early last year that was plagued with chronic,
mysterious shut downs ... about 3 times per
week. The emergency shut-off button was
being activated and needed to be physically
reset. Willis was “losing a ton of money”, so
he invested $9,000 and installed video surveillance.
Soon after, in September, the mystery
was solved. He got a tag number, description
of the car and good shots of the guy pushing
that button ... with his elbow, so as to not leave
fingerprints. The perp was Tony Zimbicki,
the owner of a competing carwash down the
street from the Gator. Willis and the county
prosecutor hope to be able to charge Zimbicki
with a felony.
■ Four men were identified and arrested
in Tuscon, Arizona after video showed them
washing a stolen BMW. A search of their home
revealed that they were involved in many other
crimes. They’re now all in jail facing charges
of car theft, burglary, fraud, and operating a
major methamphetamine lab.
■ Eric Wilson is a multi-wash operator
in Birmingham, Alabama and over the last 2
years his video was used to • arrest and convict
a ring of Russian counterfeiters. • Nab a guy
who dumped his RV’s “black water” into a bay
pit. He paid Eric $500 to have them cleaned
out. • Convict an oil changer/dumper. • Identified
and caught a trash dumper. “As time goes
on”, Eric says, “we have fewer incidents. I can’t
imagine how the old timers ever managed their
washes without cameras and the internet!”
66 • SPRING 2021
You both got caught!
In Gloucester, Virginia, two men
have been arrested following a
string of burglaries at self serve
car washes throughout the area.
According to WAVY, on March 27 the sheriff’s
office began a multijurisdictional investigation after
three self-operated car washes in Gloucester
were struck by a string of burglaries by then two
unknown suspects.
The car washes suffered “extensive property
damage and loss of revenue from their coin-operated
vacuum machines,” as a result.
After images of the suspects were captured and
then shared on social media, several community
members forwarded information regarding the suspects.
Larry M. Davis, 40, and Marty J. Redmond,
29, are currently being held on multiple charges.
No criminal is safe when Taco Bell
and a car wash pool their resources
and nab a child abuser.
In Billings, Montana, 35-year-old Willie Redd is
now in jail after he made false claims to the police
regarding the welfare of his daughter.
According to a February 8 story from KULR
8, an investigation began after police learned of
a 3-year-old child being treated at the hospital
for multiple injuries. Detective Robert Miller was
assigned to the case after hospital staff said the
child’s injuries were inconsistent with the account
supplied by the child’s mother, the story said.
“The mother told Detective Miller that she left
her child in the care of Redd on Tuesday, Feb. 2
while she went to work. She said Redd contacted
her early the next morning, advising her that the
child required emergency medical attention.”
Redd told the mother that he was at Taco Bell
with the child around 12:30 a.m. on February 3 and
said an unknown vehicle pulled up next to his car
while began firing at his car. Redd said he then accelerated
away, almost reaching “100 miles per hour”
even though the child was not restrained in her car
seat. The child ended up being thrown around inside
of the car. This is where Redd gets caught lying,
thanks to Taco Bell and a car wash. Redd then
claimed he pulled over at a car wash and called the
child’s mother to inform her of the situation. He also
said he switched out cars at the car wash.
Detective Miller examined Redd’s vehicle and
said two bullet holes were in the driver’s door, the
windshield was fractured and there were minimal
amounts of blood found in the car.
Detective Miller obtained video surveillance
footage from Taco Bell and the car wash from that
night and said he could see a windshield fracture
on Redd’s vehicle when he entered the Taco Bell
drive-thru, but no bullet holes or other damage
to the vehicle was noticed. Video surveillance at
the car wash also did not show any bullet holes or
damage to the vehicle.
On February 8, the U.S. Marshals Montana Violent
Offender’s Task Force (MVOTF) issued a
BOLO alert for Redd for a violation of his probation
connected to a prior weapons possession charge.
He was apprehended on February 17.
While apprehended, Redd was once again asked
to outline the events involving his daughter on
February 3. At the conclusion of the interview,
Redd was remanded to the Yellowstone County
Detention Facility, the story said.
The child has since been released from the Denver’s
Children Hospital.
I suppose with all of the violent and
brutal crimes being posted here and
reported all over the news, a nice
counterfeit money crime story is a
welcomed respite.
In Denver, Colorado, police arrested a man for
allegedly using counterfeit bills at several businesses,
including a car wash, according to a March 31
Ski-Hi News report.
Ronald Fleagle, 45, was apprehended after a Fraser
Quick Stop employee reported a customer was
trying to pay for gas with a fake $100 bill.
Police said the employee refused the bill, and
Fleagle paid with other cash, according to the story.
“The Quick Stop provided surveillance footage
of Fleagle and his truck. Police later spotted the
vehicle at the Fraser Car Wash, where Fleagle was
arrested around 5:40 p.m. on March 30.”
When police searched Fleagle’s truck, they apparently
found counterfeit bills and other related
evidence. Two banks also informed police that local
businesses had taken in numerous counterfeit bills,
discovered in the businesses’ regular cash deposits.
Fleagle was charged with forgery, obstruction,
possession of forgery devices, possession of second
degree forged instruments and displaying a
fictitious plate and he remains in Grand County
Jail on a $4,000 cash or surety bond. Police added
that businesses should use caution when accepting
large bills, especially $50 and $100 notes.