Central Oregonian

Burglary takes place at Terry’s Jewelry

The burglary was deterred by an alarm and the local law enforcement before they could do a lot of damage

Ramona McCallister

February 14, 2013

Central Oregonian

Wednesday morning, a large plate of glass was being installed into the front of Terry’s Jewelry and Gifts, filling the void left by a broken window.

Early Monday morning, the business was the target of a burglary, resulting in a modest loss of merchandise and replacement of the store’s front window. Due to the presence of an alarm system and the fast response of law enforcement, the burglar didn’t get their hands on much merchandise.

“It was a classic case of smash and grab,” commented Prineville Police Department Captain Michael Boyd on Wednesday morning.

“Someone took a crow bar to the front window and smashed in half of the big glass out front,” added Terry’s Jewelry salesperson Robin Culpepper.

She indicated that the security system did what it was supposed to do, and the Prineville Police Department and the Crook County Sheriff’s Department responded within 10 minutes.

“It was all very well done,” said owner Faye Hammond of the response time.

She noted that she has been in the store for 39 years, and similar incidences have happened before. This time, the amount of merchandise lost was minimal, and the burglar dropped some of the pieces on the sidewalk.

Hammond said that she received the phone call from the security company within two minutes after the window was broken. She had to remain in the store all night, given that they couldn’t install plywood over the space until morning. Accurate Glass was there at 9 a.m., boarding up the window until it could be replaced.

Boyd said that Terry’s Jewelry had video surveillance in the store, and it is currently being analyzed by the Oregon State Police and the Department of Justice. Boyd said that the video shows the burglar at the window grabbing merchandise for approximately 10 seconds, then fleeing westbound on foot.

“It’s not as clear as we would like it to be, but we are sending it to be enhanced,” he explained.

He added that the suspect appeared to be of a male gender and wearing blue jeans. Law enforcement searched the nearby alleys and surrounding areas, but had not apprehended a suspect as of Wednesday morning.

Boyd emphasized that the store had an alarm system, and it really reduced the amount of damage and loss of merchandise and the amount of time the burglar had to grab things. He also said that the camera surveillance was a benefit to their investigation.

The Prineville Police Department pointed out that the suspect committed burglary and criminal mischief, and the value of the items is still to be determined.

“We have a few leads that we are still following up on right now,” Boyd said.

He strongly encourages business owners to install burglar alarms and camera systems.

“Technology is getting less and less expensive all the time and higher and higher quality, so they help us a lot with cases,”

Side bar

The Prineville police Department are encouraging anyone with information on this case to call them at 541-447-4168.