BLOOMFIELD TOWNSHIP, Mich. – Four people were arrested for coordinating a break-in at a Bloomfield Township home, stealing medication and key fobs, and fleeing police with a 2-year-old girl and multiple guns inside their van, officials said.
Van flees scene of break-in
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Bloomfield Township police were called around 11:20 a.m. Monday (Sept. 19) to a home in the 200 block of Harrow Circle. A homeowner who was out of the country said someone had triggered home surveillance cameras at their front door and in the backyard.
Video showed Elicia Renee Romero walking up to the front door of the home and knocking to see if anyone was inside. About five minutes after nobody answered the door, Nathaniel Flavio Gonzales and Damian Shaun Hackbarth went into the backyard and smashed open a door using a landscape block, police said.
When officers arrived, they saw someone running from the house toward a gold Astro Van parked near an adjoining property. That person ignored commands to stop, dropped a plastic basket of medications, and got into the van, according to authorities.
The van spend off. Police said the medications had been stolen from the homeowner.
Officers said they saw another person running from the home, but they lost sight of them.
Police chase
Police searched for the van and found it turning east onto Big Beaver Road. They tried to make a traffic stop, but the van fled at a high speed, they said.
The driver crossed into oncoming traffic during the pursuit, and officers said they stopped following due to the dangerous maneuvers.
Shortly afterward, Troy police officers spotted the van and started to follow it, they said. The driver lost control in an industrial park, left the road, and crashed up against a fence.
Troy police identified Emanuel Wesley Stites as the driver. Romero, Hackbarth, and Gonzales were passengers in the van, according to authorities.
Officials said they found Gonzales’ 2-year-old daughter sitting unrestrained inside the van.
During a search, police discovered three guns in various places throughout the van, including one that had been stolen earlier in the year from Lakewood, Colorado.
Officials said they found four key fobs and a purse that belonged to the Bloomfield Township homeowner.
Charges
All four people were arraigned Thursday at 48th District Court and returned to the Oakland County Jail.
Romero, 25, is charged with burglary -- unforced entry into a residence. She was given a $100,000 bond, cash/surety.
Hackbarth, 18, is charged with burglary -- forced entry into a residence. He was given a $100,000 bond, cash/surety.
Gonzales, 29, is charged with burglary -- forced entry into a residence and family cruelty/neglect. He was given a $300,000 bond, cash/surety.
Stites, 23, is charged with burglary -- forced entry into a residence and felony fleeing and eluding. He was given a $250,000 bond, cash/surety.
Police believe the group might have committed other crimes around Metro Detroit. Anyone with information is asked to call the Bloomfield Township Police Department at 248-433-7755.
