Three arrests were made Saturday night after someone reported a burglary in progress at the Rand Mobile Home Park, 5540 Second St., south of Great Bend.
Sheriff Brian Bellendir noted it was the second time in the past week that an alert citizen’s call to 911 resulted in the quick arrest of burglary suspects.
“Burglaries and thefts are our biggest issue right now,” Bellendir said. “We try to stay proactive.”
With over 900 square miles to patrol, a little luck also helps.
“I’ve had deputies in the right place at the right time,” the sheriff said.
Sheriff’s officers, the Great Bend Police Department and a Kansas Highway Patrol officer all worked on the case, which began with the 911 call at 11:22 p.m., when people were seen taking items from a shed. The caller said they left in a silver Toyota Corolla with a Missouri license tag.
Bellendir said the car was located with one person inside, but officers continued to search for two more suspects on foot. The suspects were located near the crime scene around 2 a.m. Sunday.
“We did find what we suspect was stolen property in the vehicle,” Bellendir said. On Sunday, two other people reported items stolen from vehicles at the trailer park. The sheriff said officers are still sorting through the items recovered, and believe there may be other crimes that have not yet been reported.
The suspects were booked at the Barton County Jail on charges of non-residential burglary, theft and possession of stolen property. They were still in jail on Monday, each in lieu of $20,000 bond. The suspects are Randi Carol Armstrong, 30, and Charles E. Caldwell Jr., 23, both of Hollister, Mo., and Eldridge G. Alarcon, 43, of Great Bend.
Bellendir said the arrests were “very similar to a scenario from last week.” On Thursday, “an alert citizen saw suspicious activity and calleded 911.” Officers learned of suspects removing items from an oil pipe yard in the 600 block of Patton Road, Great Bend, and made an arrest when an attempt was made to sell the metal to a scrap yard.
In addition to those cases, BCSO responded to a burglary in progress call on Sept. 29 near NW 150 Road and NW 30 Ave., and caught a suspect who had allegedly just stolen a four-bottom plow.