News and Success Stories

Tag Archives: Raleigh

In 20 minutes, Raleigh detective had all the information he needed to prove that the stolen gun recovered from a suspect belonged to one of his murder victims

Thought you would like to know that we are investigating a homicide where one of our business owners was killed inside his shop. The investigation is ongoing and there is still a lot of work to do. I was able to use LeadsOnline to trace a firearm back to the victim in our case that was initially stolen at the time of the victim’s death. The victim’s firearm was located on the suspect at the time of his apprehension in less than 12 hours. Instead of using ATF to get all the trace forms, I made a simple inquiry with LeadsOnline, contacted the business where I had tracked the guns to, got the list of the previous owner and our victim’s information as the new owner of the firearm. Needless to say, I created a timeline of events concerning the ownership of a firearm, identified the true owner of the firearm, the previous owner of the firearm, and had a clear history of the firearm all within less than an hour. Not sure how long ATF would have taken, but I had hard copies of all the information I needed within 20 minutes.”

Det. Wilbur O’Neal
Raleigh Police Department
North Carolina

Storm grate thief put behind bars

“The city of Raleigh, North Carolina was experiencing a rising trend in the theft of metal storm grates over a period of two months. Working as a metal theft detective, it is sometimes hard to track stolen metal and identify the suspects in these cases. LeadsOnline made the difference in this case. In total, there were seven cases that specifically identified this series of theft. Using LeadsOnline, a suspect was identified that had been scrapping nothing but storm grates and miscellaneous shredder material. The same day I identified the suspect, an officer called me to tell me he had taken a report of some stolen storm grates, and just missed the suspect at the scrap yard, according to witnesses. With the investigative information obtained from the reports, witnesses and LeadsOnline information, I was able to place the suspect at the scene of the crimes within time, proximity and possession of stolen property. LeadsOnline helped me clear out seven cases, a pattern crime and identify $12,850 in stolen property at a scrap yard.”

Det. Wilbur O’Neal
Raleigh Police Department
North Carolina

Suspect steals copper wiring from employer for quick cash

“The victimized business in this investigation filed a larceny report believing that some of their employees were stealing copper house wire. A list was compiled by the victim and submitted in the initial report. Detective Rios searched through LeadsOnline and found that one of the victim’s employees scrapped a large amount of copper house wire. Detective Rios obtained tickets and photos of each transaction that showed exactly what the suspect sold. The victim identified all the wiring in the photos as wiring the company keeps in stock for their electrical contracting business. The victim reviewed his inventory which showed that the suspect was taking more wire than what was needed for the jobs. It was then determined that the amount of copper wire stolen amounted to $3,581. The suspect then sold/scrapped the same wiring and received a total amount of $1,982. A warrant was issued for the suspect’s arrest for Embezzlement and Obtaining Property by False Pretenses. He was apprehended and invoked his right to remain silent. There is more follow up to conduct regarding possible associates and other thefts.”

Det. Wilbur Oneal
Raleigh Police Department
North Carolina

Trio of suspects caught in larceny with hard evidence confirmed with LeadsOnline

“For over six months, a local jewelry store was reporting that they were having an issue with three unidentified suspects stealing expensive watches. In all the reported thefts, it was the same three suspects. Two of the suspects would cause a diversion and then the third suspect would commit the larceny. In one instance the suspects were observed leaving the scene in a vehicle with limited descriptors. Using LeadsOnline, I was able to determine who the suspects were through the repeated transactions option. There were hits during the reported time frames of the thefts. Further investigation revealed the main suspect had known the associates that were also identified as the remaining two suspects who were also selling the same brand of expensive stolen watches. The main suspect also drove the same make, model, and color vehicle observed during one of the larcenies. A short time after that larceny occurred; the main suspect was selling the watches at a local business. The information from LeadsOnline was used to confirm the identities of the suspects. LeadsOnline also assisted in identifying the stolen watches and gave a time line of events that coincided with the reported larcenies. In total, 19 of 22 watches have been recovered and all three suspects have been identified and arrested.”

Det. Wilbur Oneal
Raleigh Police Department
North Carolina

Raleigh detective uses LeadsOnline to stop a team of thieves from a multitude of consecutive thefts

“I was notified by management of two music stores that they were experiencing a rash of thefts concerning guitars in the local area. I was given a list of guitars that had been reported stolen. In review of the property listed as stolen, it was learned that there was a group of individuals specifically targeting music centers for mandolins and Stratocasters. LeadsOnline was able to assist in locating several of these guitars that were reported stolen and also identified/located additional music equipment that was not previously reported as being stolen. Four suspects that are known to each other and are operating together were identified. A multitude of music equipment and instruments were returned to the victims within a short amount of time. Property was located all throughout Wake County and Cumberland County. All four suspects were located and arrested. Another success with the assistance of LeadsOnline. ”

Det. Wilbur Oneal
Raleigh Police Department
North Carolina

Fraudulently purchased jewelry sold and recovered at local secondhand business

“An initial report to our call center started an investigation concerning a suspect making fraudulent purchases on a closed account to a well-known jeweler in the Raleigh area. During the investigation, it was learned the suspect made a $15,000 purchase in one day, and then, at a later date sold the jewelry to a local pawn shop. A search on LeadsOnline indicated the whereabouts of the stolen jewelry, and also revealed other fraudulent purchases from other jewelry stores in the area. The jewelry was recovered from the pawn shop. Over $15,000 in fraudulently obtained jewelry was recovered from the pawn shop, clearing three cases. This is another example of how LeadsOnline is assisting our department in clearing cases. To date, LeadsOnline has assisted the Raleigh Police Department in clearing 208 cases and recovering $300,430.55 in stolen property in a year.”

Det. Wilbur Oneal
Raleigh Police Department
North Carolina