Teens charged with stealing officer's bikes
By Jack Stephens
Published in News on August 15, 2005 1:47 PM
Alert residents helped police on Sunday arrest two teens in connection with the theft of two bicycles from a shed in east Goldsboro.
What the thieves did not know was that the bikes belonged to Goldsboro police Sgt. David Kelly.
Kelly said he was returning home and saw the blue lights of police cars and knew something was wrong.
A neighbor had seen two people go behind the shed with a screwdriver and leave with the bikes. She called authorities, saying she had seen two boys walking up and down the street before the theft.
"I live in a great block," Kelly said today. "The neighbors look out for each other."
The first officer to arrive, Julie Taylor, told Kelly that as she drove up, she saw the suspects riding away. Kelly then drove around looking for the suspects.
When asked if he were wearing his badge, he said, "I was Joe Citizen."
He said he found one suspect, a 14-year-old boy, pushing the bike into an apartment on Maple Street, where the suspect ran but was arrested later. He was charged in a juvenile petition. He was not identified because of his age.
A witness in the apartment complex told police that she had seen the other suspect in a white car that was found on North Madison Avenue. The suspect was identified by the neighbor who had seen the theft.
Marcus Antwon Darden, 18, of Rose Street was charged with breaking and entering, larceny and possession of stolen goods. He was placed in the Wayne County Jail in lieu of a $3,000 secured bond.