TROY, Mich. – Five men were arrested, charged, and held on a million-dollar bond each for home invasions in Troy.
Local 4 is learning more about the bust and the reason for the high bond, usually reserved for violent offenses.
The million-dollar bond tells you they are being looked at for many more home invasions.
The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office spoke to us about the matter and how significant the arrest was.
“It’s huge,” said Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard. “Our partners In Troy did a great job catching these folks. And it follows the same pattern we said that if somebody gets caught, probably, it’s going to be because a neighbor saw them, or an alarm went off, a homeowner had cameras or whatever the case may be. That was the case here as Troy jumped on it and did an amazing job catching them.”
Bouchard said a homeowner had security cameras working and was able to watch someone in his home.
“Yes, so he had a system that was working and saw them and contacted Troy (police),” Bouchard said. “Troy (police) flooded the area and caught all five of the people that were believed to be involved.”
Bouchard has been sounding the alarm for months about teams of burglars hitting homes in Oakland County, in many cases high-end homes, getting in and getting out with massive amounts of cash and jewelry.
Last Thursday (Aug 1.) afternoon, an extensive get by Troy police rounding up one of the suspected teams out of Columbia and Mexico as they fled from a home on Millay Drive in Troy.
“It’s different groups from different countries, so we know for a fact that Chileanians have been hammering here in Oakland County,” Bouchard said. “This isn’t the first group from Columbia that’s been here in Oakland County.”
“Breaking into a home is a serious crime. It threatens our personal security in the place we should feel most safe,” said Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald. “Because of the quick action of this homeowner and the Troy police, these defendants are locked up, and my office will prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.”
Related: The steps Metro Detroit homeowners should take to combat high-end house thefts