The rash of burglaries and break-ins that have plagued the Mountain community the past six months may have come to a halt.

The Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office, on Jan. 6, arrested Jeffrey Titus and charged him with Theft I and Possession of Burglar’s Tools. He was lodged in the Clackamas County Jail.

“Detectives have linked
Titus to a series of burglaries and thefts ... in and near the Rhododendron,
Welches and Brightwood areas of Mount Hood,” Sheriff’s Office Public
Information Officer Sgt. James Rhodes wrote in a Jan. 17 press release.
Jacob Park, 28, of Rhododendron, has also been identified as a suspect in the
string of burglaries.

Local residents played a key role in the arrest as they provided important
information to the sheriff’s office, according to Rhodes.

Kim Perry, of Welches, was one of the local residents that stepped up
following the theft of her recently deceased husband’s three chain saws from
their house.

“The community needed this,” Perry told The Mountain Times. “They (sheriff’s
deputies) acted diligently to apprehend these guys. I thank them for their
quick response – getting after this in a timely manner.”

Many items believed to have been stolen in the Mountain community have
been recovered during this investigation, and a property viewing of the
recovered items will be held in the near future.

“Detectives will be contacting those victims of burglaries and thefts from the
area directly,” Rhodes wrote.

Recent victims in the last six months are urged to report the crimes to the
sheriff’s office non-emergency number to file a crime report at 503-655-8211.
Rhodes added, “If you have purchased or received any item from Jacob Park
or Jeffrey Titus over the past six months it may be stolen property. Please
contact CCSO detectives through the confidential Tip Line by telephone at
503-723-4949 or e-mail at http://www.co.clackamas.or.us/sheriff/tip.htm.
Please reference Case No. 12-318.”

The public can also submit crime-tip text messages to the sheriff’s office from
a cell phone. Send a text message to CRIMES (274637 on your phone keypad)
with the keyword CCSO as the first word in the message body.

Perry, who endured the tragedy of her husband’s death in December only to
have been violated by the burglary, found solace in the arrests.

“I’m glad this has all come to an end – and that crime doesn’t pay.”