April 21st, 2011
SMPD arrests two in burglary spree

SUBMITTED REPORT

San Marcos police have arrested two men suspected of burglarizing dozens of apartments since February.

Kajileh

In custody at the Hays County Law Enforcement Center are Andrew Eldon Garraway, 20, and Justin Rasul Kajileh, 20. The initial bond for Garraway was set at $130,000 and for Kajileh at $10,500, subject to changes as additional warrants are filed against them.

They are charged with burglary of a habitation, a first degree felony, and credit card abuse, a third degree felony, with multiple additional charges pending as police connect reported cases and recovered property.

“Investigators are reviewing 48 burglaries reported since early February and have positively identified involvement of these suspects in 20 of the burglaries so far,” said Commander Penny Dunn,  “We  still have more work to do and more arrests warrants will be issued as the investigation continues.”

The suspects were identified following an investigation by Sgt. Byron Mobley, Det. Adrian Marin and Det. Mark Jarman of the San Marcos Police Department. Detectives have executed search warrants at the residences of both suspects and have recovered numerous items of stolen property taken in multiple burglaries, she said.

Garraway

“Some property has been sold through pawn shops in Austin and San Marcos. Recovery of the pawned items will take additional time as detectives track down unwitting buyers through information provided by the pawn shops,” Dunn said.

In the past several weeks, San Marcos police have issued warnings about the increasing number of apartment burglaries and encouraged residents to secure their homes.

The burglars targeted unlocked apartments and specifically sought out expensive electronics such as gaming systems and computers and credit cards.

San Marcos police investigators are working with other law enforcement agencies interested in filing charges against the two suspects for offenses committed outside of San Marcos. They are believed to have pawned stolen property and used stolen credit cards at retail stores located outside the jurisdiction of San Marcos.

“The investigators have done a tremendous job on this case but still want to remind residents to lock their doors and secure their property,” Dunn said. “There is no evidence that the suspects ever forcibly entered a home.  Their criminal acts were made easy because a resident left their doors or windows unlocked.”