Bucks Co. Man Stole From Hundreds Of Unlocked Vehicles: Police

BUCKS COUNTY, PA — A Yardley man was arrested Friday by the Buckingham Township Police Department following a year-long investigation into thefts from unlocked parked in Bucks County and ten municipalities in New Jersey.

Keith Johnson, 32, faces felony charges of burglary, theft and criminal trespassing, along with dozens of misdemeanor counts of loitering and prowling at night time.

Police believe Johnson is responsible for thefts as far back as February 2020, when a number residents in Buckingham Township started reporting lost items from their unlocked vehicles, Buckingham police said in a press release Friday. Surveillance video from the thefts showed a man wearing a gaiter mask, dark sweatpants, gloves and carrying a satchel stealing items from cars.

Over the next month, other municipalities in Bucks County started experiencing similar thefts, with surveillance video of the suspect appearing to match up with the man seen in earlier incidents, police said. After law enforcement agencies in the county shared information on the thefts with police departments in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, they learned that ten municipalities in New Jersey had similar overnight thefts from vehicles, authorities said. Some cars were parked in garages while others were parked on the street or in driveways of homes.

As the thefts continued through August of 2020 in 13 Bucks County municipalities, state, county and local agencies formed a task force to try and identify the suspect.

In September, the Bucks County District Attorney's Office issued a press release containing surveillance footage of the suspect, after which police noticed that the thefts stopped occurring in the county.

In October, members of the task force learned that a stolen credit card from New Jersey was used a convenience store in Pennsylvania. By January, they identified Johnson as a possible suspect.

Police obtained a search warrant of Johnson's home in Yardley where they found money, handbags, gift cards and dozens of other pieces of property that were seized as evidence.

Johnson was arrested Friday and arraigned before Judge Maggie Snow, who set bail at $100,000. Johnson was sent to Bucks County Jail, with a preliminary hearing scheduled for April 5.

Police believe Johnson is responsible for over 1,000 reported incidents.

Johnson's arrest was made possible with the cooperation of law enforcement agencies including the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office, the Bucks County District Attorney's Office, Robbinsville Police Department, Newtown Township Police Department, Central Bucks Regional Police Department, Yardley Borough Police Department, Lower Makefield Township Police Department and Bedminster Township Police Department, authorities said.

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