WARREN, Mich. (WXYZ) — Warren Police Commissioner Bill Dwyer told 7 Action News they've arrested six suspects who they believe are responsible for about 60 burglaries across the metro Detroit area.
"Very significant. When they would commit these burglaries, they would normally go in groups of five or six and that quite frankly is the trend now across the country," Dwyer said.
There was quite a series of events that led to the suspects' arrest Thursday morning.
According to Warren police, around 2 a.m., the suspects broke into a Family Dollar on Mack Avenue. Then they tried to break into Hit The Cloud 2 Smokerz in Detroit.
You can see the security footage of that attempted burglary in the video above.
We spoke to the co-owner of the smoke shop, Mohamed Almner, who told us watching the video made him feel "horrible."
"I mean, if we open up for 24 hours, I won’t be working," he said.
Almner said he believes these suspects are the same people who have tried to break into his shop multiple times over the past month.
While the suspects were trying to break into Hit The Cloud, they heard police coming and made a break for it.
Warren police were watching and called the Detroit Police Department, who then called in air support, which tracked the suspects from the sky to Jefferson Square Apartment Complex in Detroit.
Inside one of the apartments, the suspects barricaded themselves with other people.
DPD worked for hours to coax the suspects out.
"In following them and talking to them and communicating with them, we determined and learned that there were five children in the home," DPD Deputy Chief Tiffany Stewart said. "So, we really just wanted to be safe."
After a several-hour standoff, the suspects did come out of the apartment and six of them were taken into custody without any injuries. It's a massive success for police agencies.
Hearing that the suspects were arrested, Almner said, "I feel very good. I feel good and happy. They have to take these guys off the street."
Dwyer said these suspects' burglaries took place in Troy, Clawson, Madison Heights, Harper Woods and about 20 of them in Detroit.
He said the suspects would typically hit about five smaller businesses in one night. And although they do have six of the suspects now in custody, they have leads on at least four more still out there.
Dwyer said they will be seeking felony charges for these suspects.
"These are career criminals that know exactly what they’re doing and are a menace to society," he said.
