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Lincoln Journal Star, journalstar.com
BYLINE: LORI PILGER
Link to Article
Lincoln, NE
David R. Morgan (courtesy photo)
Police say they now can put a name to a DNA profile charged in a “John Doe” arrest warrant in December for a 2009 burglary at a downtown hardware store.
And it could be a big arrest, considering the same man’s DNA is tied to DNA left behind in eight more break-ins, mostly in the Grand Island area, police say in court records filed this week.
David R. Morgan, 35, already is in prison in Lincoln and was sent there on an 8– to 12-year stretch out of Hall County for possession of Lortab — a narcotic pain reliever — with intent to deliver and possession of burglar’s tools.
That appears to be just the start of Morgan’s legal troubles.
To date, he faces six separate burglary charges, one in Lancaster County and five in Hall County.
He is suspected in a Nov. 30, 2009, burglary at Baker Hardware, 801 N St.
In Grand Island, he is suspected of one Jan. 10, 2011, at a Subway; Oct. 31, 2010, USA Steak Buffet; June 30, 2008, First Brokers; July 1, 2008, Century 21; and Sept. 27, 2008, Ace Hardware.
Hall County prosecutors charged Morgan in May, about two months after Grand Island police sought a warrant for a swab of his DNA.
In it, an investigator said police were able to get DNA in the break-in at USA Steak Buffet, inside Century 21 and at Hometown Market in St. Paul, a town north of Grand Island.
“These burglaries are being linked together because the same DNA profile has been developed off of evidence found at the individual crime scenes,” Grand Island Police Officer L.J. McConnell wrote in court records.
Another officer had taken down Morgan’s plate number after spotting it at about 3:30 a.m. Oct. 31 near the USA Steak Buffet. The burglary wasn’t discovered until later that morning.
Meanwhile, in Lincoln last December, Lancaster County prosecutors filed a rare John Doe arrest warrant against a DNA profile and waited for a match to clear a Nov. 30, 2009, burglary at the downtown hardware store.
Police said an employee arrived to find the loading dock garage door open and loaded shopping carts filled with merchandise.
Someone had pried open a door to get inside, sprayed paint over security cameras, stolen the video recording system, rummaged through offices and file cabinets and used power tools and saw blades to cut into a safe.
The total loss in merchandise and cash was estimated at $20,000.
In affidavits for arrest warrants, Lincoln Police Investigator Christopher Milisits said officers found DNA thought to have been left behind by the burglars.
Investigators collected the DNA on swabs and sent them to the state lab.
A year later, police got a report that the lab was able to get DNA from two men, but the profiles didn’t match any in CODIS, the national DNA database.
On March 10, Lincoln police said it was the DNA McConnell got from Morgan in Grand Island, with a signed court order in March, that came back as a match to DNA on the evidence left behind in Lincoln.
A warrant was issued for Morgan’s arrest in the case on Monday.
The second suspect has not been identified yet.
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International Association for Property and Evidence
“Law Enforcement Serving the Needs of Law Enforcement”
www.IAPE.org
Marijuana raids continue;
March 19, 2010Lincoln Journal Star (Nebraska)
BYLINE: ZACH PLUHACEK
Lincoln, NE
Police’s pot stash grows
More than two dozen yard waste bags filled with drying marijuana — evidence of 11 recent raids on pot-growing houses in Lincoln — are neatly organized in a nondescript warehouse in the city.
In at least as many black garbage sacks, piled next to the paper bags, is more marijuana seized in the raids. As of Thursday afternoon, police had raided 11 houses and seized more than 7,500 plants.
“It comes to a point where all you can do is laugh,” says Pam Fittje, property manager for Lincoln police. “There’s this rumor among the officers that we’re out of (warehouse) space.”
Since March 5, members of the Lincoln/Lancaster County Narcotics Task Force have served at least 15 search warrants at different addresses in the city, Sgt. Bill Koepke said Thursday.
Most of the evidence seized during those searches — millions of dollars worth of marijuana, piles of heat lamps, plastic pots, jugs of fertilizer and ventilation ducts — is stored in the warehouse.
It’s all organized by address, with evidence from each growing operations taking up several wooden pallets.
Typically, drug evidence would be stored in the evidence room at police headquarters. The off-site warehouse is usually reserved for vehicles and large equipment.
But now, Fittje said,“this area has been taken over by the grow operation.”
Koepke says prosecutors will decide how many of the plants need to be saved for evidence, and it’s likely a good portion will.
That’s meant some extra work for Fittje’s team.
Usually, she said, the property unit would strip and dry the leaves from the plants. But in this case, the unit has been asked to preserve the plants themselves.
“That’s what gets a little overwhelming,” Fittje said. “We just have never had this much stuff.”
Before March 5, police had busted 34 marijuana growing operations over the past decade, yielding 1,218 plants, according to Chief Tom Casady.
Police believe all 11 houses are connected, and the evidence from each house is similar to the others.
In his 18 years on the force, Koepke said, this is the largest operation he’s seen.
“The hoods are the same, the lights are the same — but I don’t know how much diversity you can have in this area,” Koepke said.
He also said the plants are believed to be of fairly high quality, but laboratories do not typically test for levels of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the chemical that gives marijuana its effect.
Investigators don’t think the grow operation was limited to the number of plants officers seized.
Koepke said it’s hard to tell how much pot is involved in the suspected drug ring, which has resulted in at least six arrests,with charged filed against five.
“Quite a bit of marijuana,” Koepke said.
Many of the plants police have seized — those rotting in garbage bags in the warehouse — will be destroyed.
“We’re going to be burning them real soon,” Fittje said.
Other items seized in the search warrants — including stacks of plastic pots used to grow the plants — will simply be thrown out.
Those present no danger to the public, Koepke said, holding one of the pots.
“No one’s going to be able to lick it and get high.”
Reach Zach Pluhacek at 473‑7234 or zpluhacek@journalstar.com
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International Association for Property and Evidence
“Law Enforcement Serving the Needs of Law Enforcement”
www.IAPE.org
Pot piling up in Lincoln police warehouse
March 19, 2010Lincoln Journal Star, JournalStar.com
BYLINE: ZACH PLUHACEK / Lincoln Journal Star
Link to Article
One Video
Lincoln, NE
Paper lawn bags filled with marijuana dry in a police property room on March 18, 2010. (ERIC GREGORY / Lincoln Journal Star)
Sgt. William Koepke, with the Lincoln/Lancaster County Narcotics Task Force, talks with members of the media about the marijuana and growing materials that are now consuming much of the space in a police property room. (ERIC GREGORY / Lincoln Journal Star)
More than two dozen yard waste bags filled with drying marijuana — evidence of 11 recent raids on pot-growing houses in Lincoln — are neatly organized in a nondescript warehouse in the city.
In at least as many black garbage sacks, piled next to the paper bags, are more of the plants seized in the raids as of Thursday afternoon — more than 7,400 in all.
“It comes to a point where all you can do is laugh,” says Pam Fittje, property manager for Lincoln police. “There’s this rumor among the officers that we’re out of (warehouse) space.”
Since March 5, members of the Lincoln/Lancaster County Narcotics Task Force have served at least 15 search warrants at different addresses in the city, Sgt. Bill Koepke said Thursday.
Most of the evidence seized during those searches — millions of dollars worth of marijuana, piles of heat lamps, plastic pots, jugs of fertilizer and ventilation ducts — is stored in the warehouse.
It’s all organized by address, with evidence from each growing operations taking up several wooden pallets.
Typically, drug evidence would be stored in the evidence room at police headquarters. The off-site warehouse is usually reserved for vehicles and large equipment.
But now, Fittje said, “this area has been taken over by the grow operation.”
Koepke says prosecutors will decide how many of the plants need to be saved for evidence, and it’s likely a good portion will.
That’s meant some extra work for Fittje’s team.
Usually, she said, the property unit would strip and dry the leaves from the plants. But in this case, the unit has been asked to preserve the plants themselves.
“That’s what gets a little overwhelming,” Fittje said. “We just have never had this much stuff.”
Before March 5, police had busted 34 marijuana growing operations over the past decade, yielding 1,218 plants, according to Chief Tom Casady.
Police believe the 11 recent busts are connected, and the evidence from each house is similar to the others.
In his 18 years on the force, Koepke said, this is the largest operation he’s seen.
“The hoods are the same, the lights are the same — but I don’t know how much diversity you can have in this area,” Koepke said.
He also said the plants are believed to be of fairly high quality, but laboratories do not typically test for levels of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the chemical that gives marijuana its effect.
Investigators don’t think the grow operation was limited to the number of plants officers seized.
Koepke said it’s hard to tell how much pot is involved in the suspected drug ring, which has resulted in at least six arrests, with charged filed against five people.
“Quite a bit of marijuana,” Koepke said.
Many of the plants police have seized — those rotting in garbage bags in the warehouse — will be destroyed.
“We’re going to be burning them real soon,” Fittje said.
Other items seized in the search warrants — including stacks of plastic pots used to grow the plants — will simply be thrown out.
Those present no danger to the public, Koepke said, holding one of the pots.
“No one’s going to be able to lick it and get high.”
Reach Zach Pluhacek at 473‑7234 or zpluhacek@journalstar.com.
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International Association for Property and Evidence
“Law Enforcement Serving the Needs of Law Enforcement”
www.IAPE.org