Stealing: With a gun or a credit card, it's all against the law. And detectives need your help to track down some suspects in some recent Jefferson County cases.
If you can help identify any of the suspects in the video connected to this story, you are encouraged to call Crime Stoppers. Cash rewards are offered if your tip leads to the arrest of any suspect.
The first case is one of identity theft. A couple were caught on-camera running up thousands of dollars at Lowe's. But they apparently had no intention of paying the bill.
"They somehow came into an individual's information, got her Lowe's card, transferred it to their home," Jefferson County Sergeant Bill Musgrove said. "The bills come to their house, and they've been running up the tab on it."
Click on the attached video link to see the couple. Detectives want to identify them before they could possibly strike again.
The next case is a robbery at the A to Z Grocery Store in Center Point. It started with one man who casually strolled into the store. But he was not there to shop.
"He goes back out, and he gets his buddies, and he says it's okay, so they all put on their little masks and hoodies and grab their pistols and in they go," Musgrove said.
On the video, it is hard to make out the suspects' faces. But one suspect in blue appears to be wearing a Birmingham Water Works shirt. He's a big man who might be older, and detectives think that could be a clue to solving this robbery.
"Everybody had a gun in the little window, and they were all grabbing cash," Musgrove said. "It would have been easy to bump into your fellow robber and shoot the man by accident."
The third case is a man who was seen wandering around near Mary Vann Lane off Old Springville Road. He apparently broke into a business looking for anything to steal.
"This type of person is out there needing some money for drugs, and at any cost at any time he's looking for something to steal," Musgrove said.
Take a close look at the video. Detectives think the suspect probably lives around the Center Point/Chalkville area.
In the fourth case, two people showed up late at night at a Sonic on Center Point Parkway. They didn't want food. They wanted cash. And in less than 10 seconds, deputies said they grabbed what they could and then fled the scene.
"This is a plea for the community to work with us help identify these people, and let's get them off the street and make it safer for all of us," Musgrove said.
Anyone who recognizes suspects from any of the cases is urged to call Crime Stoppers at (205) 254-7777. All calls are anonymous. And if your tip is the first to lead to an arrest, you qualify for a cash reward.
Encrypted tips can also be submitted online by logging onto www.birminghamcrimestoppers.org and following the instructions on the main page.
Crime Stoppers is a partnership between local law enforcement, the Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce and ABC 33/40. Together, our goal is to make our community a safer place to live and work.
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