Man Suspected of Burglary, Pawning Jewelry to Stand Trial

A man arrested last March on suspicion of prowling and later linked to burglaries in Rockridge and Piedmont through pawned jewelry is scheduled to appear in Alameda County Superior Court on Sept. 6 to have a trial date set, according to county documents.

Yardey Brown, 61, is charged with three counts of burglary and two counts of receiving stolen property, all felonies, and a misdemeanor count of loitering, the documents say.

Piedmont Police Detective George Phifer said Brown was held to answer on those counts after a preliminary hearing earlier this year.

Meanwhile, Brown remains in custody at Santa Rita County Jail in lieu of $720,000 bail.

Brown was initially arrested March 25 after a Piedmont resident reported a prowler in the backyard. A press release issued by Piedmont Police Chief Rikki Goede on March 28 said that Brown may have pawned more than $50,000 worth of jewelry over the past five months.

Detective Phifer said earlier that information tied Brown to burglaries in the first block of Manor Drive in Piedmont and in the 5400 block of Manila Avenue in Rockridge. 

Police recovered jewelry stolen in both of those cases from an Oakland pawn shop, Phifer said.

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