| Burglar tracked with GPS found guilty in jury trial | | Posted: Thursday, February 9, 2012 10:00 pm
| A Union City man was found guilty Wednesday of charges stemming from a Memorial Day 2011 home invasion where police tracked him with a stolen cell phone’s GPS.
Wesley Dawone Coleman, 23, was found guilty of aggravated burglary, theft and evading arrest at the conclusion of a jury trial in Obion County Circuit Court.
Coleman’s sentencing hearing was set for March 7 before Circuit Judge William B. Acree, according to Obion County Circuit Court Clerk Harry Johnson.
It was determined during the trial that the value of the stolen property was more than $500 and less than $1,000.
The charges against Coleman stemmed from a May 30, 2011 home invasion at Todd and Amy Petty’s residence at 503 East Main St. in Union City.
Coleman was arrested at 3:49 a.m. on the trio of charges, levied in connection with an incident that allegedly occurred a short time earlier at the Petty home. Officers from the Union City Police Department had responded about 3:21 a.m. to a burglary alarm at the residence.
According to the police report, Petty told police someone had broken into the back door while he and his family were asleep. They were awakened by the audible alarm set off by an intruder apparently breaking the glass out of the rear door and entering their residence, then breaking a wooden door entering the dining room area.
The intruder allegedly stole a purse belonging to Petty’s wife and then fled the scene. The purse contained an iPhone© and iPod touch©, as well as Mrs. Petty’s driver’s license, credit and debit cards and other items.
Police officers reported they arrived in the area to hear dogs barking in the direction of South Ury Street. Petty was able to access his wife’s cell phone location using GPS technology. It showed the cell phone was in the area of South Division and Waddell streets, where police began searching.
Police said they witnessed Coleman running between two residences in the 400 block of Waddell Street and he was arrested a short time later beside a residence in the 400 block of East Florida Avenue. He allegedly had in his possession a pink iPod cover that was reported stolen during the home invasion.
In addition, police located a black purse in some weeds along a wooded fence in the backyard of one of the residences in the 400 block of Waddell Street. No items were missing from the purse. An iPhone and iPod touch were found in the backyard of the other residence on Waddell Street, according to the police report.
No injuries were reported in the home invasion at the Petty residence.
Published in The Messenger 2.9.12 | | | | |
