The men were wearing gloves and running through the woods, which raised suspicion. The police lieutenant followed the suspects in his vehicle and called for patrol units who later stopped the suspects and recovered stolen goods from the trunk of their car.
The suspects have been identified as 26-year-old Joseph R. Blevins, who resides in the Woodland Apartments in Wilmington and Christopher Miller, 27, of the Murray Manor Trailer Park.
The men have been linked to five residential burglaries so far, however, additional charges are pending.
The arrests come after several months of investigating home burglaries in the Winterthur, Mount Cuba and Centerville areas of Delaware. Witnesses reported seeing a green colored Cadillac that was occupied by two white men in the area around the times of one of the break-ins.
On Friday, October 2, at 1:35 p.m., the son of a county police detective called his father and told him he had just witnessed two white men park a green Cadillac on Paper Mill Road and walk into the wooded area toward the community of Chestnut Valley.
While detectives were en route, Lieutenant Gerard Donovan and his son were traveling along Paper Mill Road when they observed the suspects running out of the woods and getting into the Cadillac. Lieutenant Donovan was aware of the recent burglary trend and familiar with the green Cadillac that was sought by detectives. He followed the car and called 911.
Officers then arrived and moved in, stopping the car on Kirkwood Highway near the Red Mill Shopping Center. Both occupants were detained and later arrested for two counts of burglary after police recovered stolen goods from the trunk.
Both Blevins and Miller were arrested for two counts of burglary and related offenses. They were both committed to the Howard Young Prison after failing to post $22,500 secured bail. Blevins has since posted bail and has been released. He is now wanted again for three additional burglaries. Miller remains in prison.
