CAMDEN, DELAWARE (1/19/2015) Two downstate Delaware men have been charged in connection with appliance thefts from 52 homes in Kent and Sussex counties, some of them under construction or renovation, state police said today.
The pair now face 161 charges following their initial arrest last month near Camden.
Kevin L. Trotter, 27, of Dover, and Nathaniel A. Gibbs, 48, of Lincoln, were first arrested around 3 a.m. Dec. 5 when a trooper spotted their white van driving slowly around the Ponds of Willow Grove development near Camden, where new homes were being built and recent thefts had been reported.
Police said the pair fled on foot from a traffic stop but were taken into custody a short time later.
As detectives were interviewing the two men later that morning, a construction company building a home in the 900 block of Chanticleer Circle in the Ponds of Willow Grove reported someone had broken into a house through the night and moved appliances from the kitchen into the garage in an attempt to steal the items.
“It was determined through the interviews with the suspects that they had conspired with each other to steal the appliances from the house,” police said in a news release.
Trotter and Gibbs were charged with burglary, conspiracy and related counts. Both were being held at Sussex Correctional Institution in lieu of $10,450 secured bail for Trotter and $9,800 for Gibbs.
Police said subsequent investigation led to the additional charges, and additional bail of 181,500 for Trotter and $321,200 for Gibbs.