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Burglary caught on video, suspect recognized

Posted at 4:01 PM, May 17, 2017
and last updated 2018-11-03 15:20:01-04

A burglary on the 4900 block of Topsey Dr. in Killeen was caught on camera Monday.

That type of footage helps police find suspects and close cases. But,police don't want victims to only share video with them.

Killeen Police said people should show their neighbors and share it on social media, too.

"I came in, I was coming into the garage, I was gonna go cut the grass, went into the shed, opened it up to get my weed eater, looked in, didn't see the weed eater," Reginald Ladson, the homeowner, said. 

Ladson and his wife said it didn't take long before they realized propane tanks and a a brand new smoker were gone, too.

"This week here I was gonna put it to use, test it out before Memorial Day weekend," Ladson added. 

Even though he never got to test out his smoker, the burglary put his surveillance system to the test.

"You look at the film, and he came straight to the shed. And as I was watching it, I said this guy, it looks like he's been in my yard before. He's too comfortable here," Ladson said.

So, the Ladsons filed a report and showed both Killeen Police and neighbors the video.

Ladson told News Channel 25 one of his neighbors recognized the burglar.

"The more of our community involved, the better we're gonna fight crime," Antonia McDaniel, a Deputy Division Commander for the Killeen Police Department said. 

A partnership Killeen Police said is even more important now because these kind of crimes have increased.

"You know our community is the backbone, and our police department we're there to help but we have to get our entire community involved," McDaniel added. 

That's exactly why Ladson says he installed the cameras in the first place.

"We're here to stand for with the police department and help them out anyway we can," Ladson added.

Another way Killeen Police said people can prevent burglaries is to make sure the home looks lived in by mowing the grass, trimming the hedges and taking in the mail.

The case is still under investigation.

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