Cell phone warehouse robbed while security guard on duty
DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla. (WSVN) -- The owner of a warehouse is questioning security efforts after a guard reported that everything was fine even though thousands of dollars in merchandise was stolen.
Burglars broke into Reagan Wireless, at 3390 S.W. 15th St., about 5 p.m. Sunday, a Broward Sheriff's Office report and company owner Daniel Kaufman said.
Kaufman, who pays $180,000 a year to Navarro Security for protection of his merchandise, says he is upset after crooks cleaned out three quarters of a million dollars worth of cell phones while security guards reported to the alarm company that everything was all right.
Using a blowtorch, the burglars cut a large hole into the 20,000-square foot building's back door and used the company's forklift to remove pallets of phones from the shelves. During the theft, Kaufman said the building's motion alarms went off several times in one hour.
As the alarm company at Reagan Wireless alerted Navarro Security, a guard reported that nothing out of the ordinary seemed to be happening, even though he never showed up at the warehouse. A second guard did show up and also confirmed that everything was OK when the alarm company called again. Surveillance cameras caught that guard on tape washing his vehicle for eleven minutes, as the thieves spent three hours inside the warehouse.
Kaufman said the phones stolen included 6,500 Sony Ericsson Z525i phones worth about $110 each retail and about 1,000 ESPN Samsung ACE phones that sell for about $105. Thieves took a total of $750,000 of unlocked phones that can be used overseas.
Kaufman also said whoever stole the merchandise knew exactly where to find it. "Well, they had some information, prior information," he said, "but, you know, it could be one of the many drivers we have every day. It could be one of the security guards -- we let them walk through the place. It could be one of my new employees I hired." He now says he plans to administer polygraph tests to all of his employees.
No charges have been filed because the investigation is ongoing, BSO spokesman Hugh Graf said. Nick Navarro, the former Broward County Sheriff who owns Navarro Security, said he could not explain why his guard left but says they are able to take breaks. "They are allowed to call our dispatcher, let them know they are going to go and use a restroom in a gas station or a restaurant or somewhere else outside the premises," Navarro said.
The owner of Reagan Wireless is offering a $50,000 reward for the capture of whoever is responsible for his stolen merchandise. Anyone with information is urged to call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS.
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