Local police told the Lincoln (Neb.) Journal Star that one of its carriers tipped them to a ring of thieves. Four days later, Janesville, Wis., police were investigating two early-morning burglaries thanks to an observant carrier on the city's west side.
While delivering papers early on June 25, an unidentified carrier in Lincoln saw men hustling consumer electronics into an SUV. Police said the carrier then called in the vehicle's license plate number.
A 19-year-old from Council Bluffs, Iowa, a 21-year-old from Omaha and two 17-year-olds were arrested on suspicion of stealing from automobiles and giving false information to an officer, according to police.
The Journal-Star reported that when police stopped the SUV nearby, they and found "a large amount of stolen electronics, including GPS units, a satellite radio receiver, several car stereos, MP3 players and cell phones."
On June 29, The Janesville Gazette reported police were investigating burglaries after a newspaper carrier called 911 early the same morning after discovering the smashed front door of a pharmacy. At about the same time, alarms sounded at the pharmacy and another store nearby.
The paper said police thought several persons were involved in the burglaries.