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SUGAR HOUSE — A brazen serial burglar has struck at least 12 Sugar House businesses in the last two months, leaving a trail of damage and lost revenue in his wake.
Police are turning to the public for help. They've released video on YouTube of the man they think is responsible for the burglaries, and are asking for any information that might lead to finding him.
"What we're trying to do is get this out to the public in the hope that somebody might recognize this individual or at least give us some more information that might help lead to the discovery of this person," said Salt Lake City Police Det. Rick Wall.
- Male
- Caucasian adult
- Wearing a dark hooded sweat shirt, blue jeans, white athletic shoes and black knitted gloves
The suspect doesn't operate exactly the same at every business he targets, but police said that generally he breaks a door or window to gain entry and the takes either a safe or a cash register.
Wayne Baxter's business, Fisher Cyclery, was targeted.
"He stole cash, straightforward," he said. "He knew exactly what he was going to do and he did it."
Kathleen Wright works at Standard Optical, another business hit by the burglar. Again, he didn't take any merchandise - just cash.
"Glasses were still in place, he just rummaged through and took money out of our till," she said.
- If you have any information on this case, you can call police at(801) 799-3000
- You can also text the phrase TIPSLCPD to the number 274637, which spells "crimes." Reference case #12-182905.
In the surveillance video posted to the SLCPD YouTube channel, the suspect can be seen breaking the door of a store with some object, then crawling through the broken glass into the the building.
When he exits, less than a minute later, he seems to be stuffing cash into his pockets. Cars can be seen driving by as he squeezes out the broken door, well within view.
Wall encouraged people to call in if they think they can help locate the man.
"This has been happening for the past few weeks," he said. "That's why it's urgent we get it out to the public."
He also said that businesses should make sure to secure doors and windows and install things like alarms and security cameras. Video is especially useful for police.
"Video like this is a great tool for us," Wall said. "It may not necessarily prevent (a burglary), but it certainly gives us a great investigative tool."
Contributing: Devon Dolan
