By Christian Jennings - bio | email
THOMASVILLE, GA (WALB) - Four men are in jail charged with burglary after they were caught breaking into a Thomasville man's home.
The victim went home on his lunch break Friday.
When he pulled in his driveway he noticed his front door was open and a suspicious vehicle was parked outside.
What was intended to be a peaceful lunch hour for Richard Vann, turned into a close encounter with thieves caught in the act.
He expected to find his home empty, instead he was greeted with some unwanted guests.
When Richard Vann pulled into his home on Windingwood Lane just after 1, he expected to be greeted by his dog. Not four strangers.
"I drove in my driveway, pulled in and saw a car. At first I thought it was someone I knew but there were three other people exiting the house," said Vann.
The four men who dropped by during lunch hour were Willie Sims, David Lattimore, Anthony Youmas, and Shon Herring.
"They broke this panel on my door," he said.
When they saw Vann they stopped what they were doing and headed for the getaway car.
"I got a little nervous because I didn't know if they had firearms," said Vann.
Vann thought he had the thieves blocked in but they drove through his yard onto Spring Hill Road. Minutes later, they ditched the car and took off.
"We brought in K-9s and tracked the area," said investigator Jason Carroll with the Thomas County Sheriff's Office.
Herring was arrested first. Investigators say he hitched a ride from an elderly woman who stopped down the road to talk to deputies while he was in the car.
The other three were arrested in Metcalf only a couple hours later. They were tired of running, so stopped to get a drink at a convenience store.
"You never think it's going to happen to you," said Vann.
But it's happening everywhere. Investigators say residential burglaries are on the rise.
So it's important to take extra steps to protect your property.
"Get an alarm system, get a neighbor to watch out for your property, and check your locks," said Carroll.
The four men told investigators they were only at Mr. Vann's home for three minutes before he pulled up.
They didn't get away with any property. In this case someone just happened to be in the right place at the right time.
The four men arrested are from Tallahassee.
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