Press release: Daytime burglars apprehended

Clovis Police Department — A pair of local Clovis men identified as 27 year old Gabriel Rodriguez and 30 year old Jeremiah Mascarenas were arrested Friday, June 4, 2010 at around Noon time by Clovis Police Officers responding to a report of a “Burglary In Progress” called in by neighbors on Nancy Lopez Drive located in a Northeast Clovis neighborhood. Gabriel Rodriguez was arrested on counts of Aggravated Residential Burglary, Conspiracy, Felon In Possession of a Firearm, Larceny of a Firearm, Possession of Burglary Tools, Felony Tampering with Evidence, Resisting, Obstructing or Evading An Officer, Criminal Trespass and Felony Criminal Damage and Jeremiah Mascarenas was arrested on counts of Accessory to Aggravated Burglary, Conspiracy, Felony Criminal Damage, Criminal Trespass and Resisting, Evading or Obstructing an Officer after watchful neighbors contacted police immediately with suspect identifying information and suspect vehicle description upon seeing suspect Gabriel Rodriguez enter a neighbor’s house through a front living room window on Nancy Lopez Drive in Clovis while leaving the parked suspect vehicle running in the victim’s driveway.

Upon the arrival of Officers in the area, a Clovis Police Officer located the victim home with a yellow Dodge Neon in the driveway unoccupied, but with the motor left running, as described by a reporting neighbor. As the Officer approached the house, he saw the burglary suspects in the home and then flee out the back door of the home upon seeing the Officer approach.

The Officer radioed the information to other responding Officers in the area as a DA Office Investigator assisted the Officer in clearing the home of any other possible burglary suspects. During this search it was discovered a pistol may have been stolen from the residence by one of the burglary suspects as evidenced by a pistol bag found lying on the floor and this information was conveyed to other Officers in the area. During their attempted evasion of the Officers the burglary suspects Gabriel Rodriguez and Jeremiah Mascarenas damaged home owner’s fences in the area of Ray Hardy and Colonial Parkway. Suspect Gabriel Rodriguez was found by an Officer hiding in bushes on Colonial Parkway and suspect Jeremiah Mascarenas was found hiding under a car in a garage of a residence nearby on Colonial Parkway. The loaded pistol stolen from the Nancy Lopez Drive residence was also found in the bushes on Colonial Parkway. A computer and electronics from an office in the home were found packed in a gym type bag lying on the living room floor that had been left by the fleeing burglars.

Clovis Police would like to remind citizens that this is a prime example that the crime fighting effort is a community team effort between concerned, watchful citizens and neighbors and police that resulted in the successful apprehension of two burglary suspects and the recovery of stolen property immediately.