Surveillance

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. ? Authorities believe they have solved the Christmas Eve 2002 theft of about $56,800 in cash, checks and food stamps from Weis Market in Martinsburg, thanks to an e-mailed, anonymous tip received last month. Former store employees Jason Wayne Butts, 27, of 542 Mesquite Lane, and Robert James Suchman, 54, of 740 Boy Scout Road, both were arraigned Thursday on charges of grand larceny and breaking and entering by Berkeley County Magistrate Jim Humphrey, according to court records.

MARTINSBURG, W.VA.-Authorities believe they have solved the Christmas Eve 2002 theft of about $56,800 in cash, checks and food stamps from Weis Market in Martinsburg, thanks to an e-mailed, anonymous tip received last month. Former store employees Jason Wayne Butts, 27, of 542 Mesquite Lane, and Robert James Suchman, 54, of 740 Boy Scout Road, both were arraigned Thursday on charges of grand larceny and breaking and entering by Berkeley County Magistrate Jim Humphrey, according to court records.

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. -- The Berkeley County Sheriff's Department's "toy hauler" does not tote fun and games. Purchased for $33,400 from Falling Waters, W.Va.,-based Outdoor Express RV Inc. about a year ago, the 2008 Wildwood RV, known for its recreational equipment-hauling capacity, is the department's new mobile command center. About $5,000 in surveillance video camera equipment recently installed in the vehicle monitored activities simultaneously in multiple areas of the Berkeley County Youth Fair grounds last week.

ST. JOHNS, Ariz. (AP) -- A forest ranger who alertly spotted a pair of fugitives at a remote Arizona campsite was hailed Friday as "a true hero" after his tip allowed a heavily armed law enforcement contingent to capture the couple. The efforts by the ranger came at great risk. Fugitive John McCluskey had a gun in his possession said he wished he would have shot the forest ranger and arresting officers when he had the chance, authorities said. "He is a true hero," Apache County Sheriff Joseph Dedman said of the ranger.

A Brooklyn, N.Y., man was placed on probation for 11 months and fined $35,000 after pleading guilty Monday in Washington County Circuit Court to conspiring to smuggle 2,568 cartons of cigarettes through Maryland. Abdelaziz M. Abdelaziz, 43, pleaded guilty to conspiring to transport unstamped cigarettes in the July 10, 2012, incident. Assistant State's Attorney Arthur Rozes told Judge Daniel P. Dwyer that a home in Powhatan, Va., had been under surveillance by agents from the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Virginia Attorney General's Office for possible cigarette smuggling.

HAGERSTOWN -- The Hagerstown Police Department is hoping to learn more about a Nov. 13 shooting and subsequent traffic accident on Jonathan Street through a series of pictures taken by surveillance cameras. On Nov. 13 at 8:21 p.m., officers from the police department responded to the area of Jonathan Street and Murph Avenue to find a red Jeep that had crashed into a light pole at the intersection, Sgt. Paul J. Kifer said. It then was learned that shots were fired to the rear of residences in the 300 block of North Jonathan Street near Blooms Avenue, Kifer said.

martinsburg@herald-mail.com MARTINSBURG, W.VA. - Police have released a photograph of the man who robbed another man at gunpoint Wednesday and drove the man to a bank, where he used the victim's ATM card to withdraw money, Martinsburg Police Department Detective Sgt. George Swartwood said. The photograph was taken by a surveillance camera on the bank's ATM, Swartwood said. He would not say exactly how much money was withdrawn from the machine, but described it as a "minimal" amount.

Normally, I am strongly opposed to the use of cop surveillance cameras on public streets, but it's hard to get too worked up over the Hagerstown Police Department's announcement that it will install up to 14 videocams downtown. It's hard to get worked up because it will affect such a tiny number of residents. In fact, at any given time, cameras probably will outnumber shoppers 2-1. Might get some nice shots of the tumbleweed blowing down city streets, however. Only in Hagerstown would shopping be regarded as a suspicious activity.

A surveillance system operated by the Hagerstown Police Department will have “smart-camera” technology featuring motion-activated capabilities and will allow officers to view the department's more than 100 cameras on laptop computers in their cruisers, Hagerstown Police Chief Mark Holtzman said Tuesday. The enhancements were made possible after Hagerstown City Council members Tuesday night approved a $162,043 expenditure for the new system. The money comes from a $900,000 COPS Tech grant that previously was awarded to the police department.