Teenager confesses to break-in, charged with stealing handgun from Ypsilanti Township business
Blair Howell
Courtesy of the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office
The Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Office reported a man contacted investigators and told them he recognized Blair Howell, 17, in published security camera photographs. After that tip, deputies contacted Howell and found clothes in his home matching the ones pictured in the security camera footage, the sheriff's department reported in a media summary.
Howell later confessed to breaking into X-Ray and Specialty Instruments, located at 1980 E. Michigan Ave., at 12:44 a.m. July 11, deputies reported.
Investigators said Howell pried open the front door to the business with an unknown object. He then took a handgun from a desk drawer, opened a pop vending machine and stole cash and coins, they said.
Howell has been arraigned on charges of burglary and larceny of a firearm, deputies reported. He is being held in the Washtenaw County Jail on a $5,000 cash or surety bond, jail records show.
He has a preliminary examination set for 8:30 a.m. July 24 at the 14A-1 District Court in Pittsfield Township, jail records indicate.
Kyle Feldscher covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at kylefeldscher@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
lefty48197
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 11:41 p.m.
maybe somebody was threatening the kid and he had to "stand his ground"?
RJA
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 9:43 p.m.
Just kep holding him until it all comes out in the wash!
nickcarraweigh
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 6:51 p.m.
Someone recognized the suspect from the photo that annarbor.com posted online? Comments posted at the time made light about the poor quality of that photo, which was snapped at night in a room without lighting. Was the stolen gun found?
Ricebrnr
Wed, Jul 18, 2012 : 12:03 a.m.
ah yes "future crime" is often averted by "thought police" perhaps we should get tips from the extremists like the Taliban on how to get there.
greg, too
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 3:56 a.m.
YES YES YES....where is the gun. The money was insured, as was anything he stole outside of the weapon. Where is the weapon that could be used in a future gun crime?
Pickforddick
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 5:52 p.m.
There you go again.......blame the victims not the criminal...."It's your fault you own a car and they carjacked you".....time to lock up the criminals, let them do hard time and help the victims.
Ricebrnr
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 5:40 p.m.
The gun was locked inside the building. That question was answered. Following your logic, at what point would it be secure enough for you? Also if your laptop, cell phone, kitchen knife, or car was stolen and used in crimes in the future, you should be responsible for it right? Where it is now cannot be answered by the commentors and speculation serves no purpose.
greg, too
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 3:56 a.m.
So no one in the comments or from a2.com ever answered my major question.....where is the gun he stole? And why wasn't the gun locked? It sounds like another criminal put another gun on the streets for another future crime.
greg, too
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 4:26 p.m.
Did they find the gun? If not, it's just another case of a careless gun owner putting another gun in the hands of criminals because they were too lazy to lock it up properly. Why would a speciality supply company have a handgun unlocked in a desk drawer?
greg, too
Tue, Jul 17, 2012 : 3:54 a.m.
To the comments... RWS and Rivebrnr...why would you be in that neighborhood if you didn't expect some crime? So lock your da$# gun away when you leave work. And, may I ask, if you are so "paranoid" about where you are, why would you not have a better security system? A gun in the desk is nice when you are there, but when you are gone, it doesn't do much. The YPD did a great job and all, but they got very lucky that they were dealign with a moronic criminal.
Ricebrnr
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 6:32 p.m.
@ a2cents, do you have: - a smoke detector or fire extinguisher? must be paranoid about fires - wear a seat belt, have car insurance? must be paranoid of crashes - have health insurance, see your doctors? must be a hypochondriac - have locks on your doors? what are you scared of? Do not confuse preparation for paranoia. Even so, just because you're paranoid doesn't mean someone is not out to get you...
Pickforddick
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 5:53 p.m.
greg, too.............are you serious?
Davidian
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 5:52 p.m.
To protect himself from guys like Mr. Howell, obviously. And your gun doesn't do you much good when it's in a locked drawer. No one should have to live their lives because of criminals. It's the other way around. Too bad the owner wasn't there and didn't fill him full of lead.
a2cents
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 5:28 p.m.
paranoia?
RWS
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 4:40 p.m.
ya beat me to it, Ricebrnr............. oh, and greg,too............self protection maybe?
Ricebrnr
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 4:32 p.m.
right because criminals don't target medical specialty supply companies...o wait.. Also yes the gun owner is irresponsible because a CRIMINAL broke in through locked and secured doors. So it would be your fault if someone kicked in your doors and stole your stuff, right? Hope you locked up your kitchen knives or anything else that can be used as a weapon.
Ricebrnr
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 4:24 p.m.
"Howell has been arraigned on charges of burglary and larceny of a firearm, deputies reported" and what of the host of other firearm charges he could be charged with as wel??? what's the point of all these laws again? As the accused has allegedly demonstrated not to control the criminals...
nickcarraweigh
Thu, Jul 19, 2012 : 6:49 p.m.
No indication I can see that he had a gun when he was taken into custody.
Davidian
Mon, Jul 16, 2012 : 5:55 p.m.
Exactly - illegal possession of a firearm (he's 17), use of a firearm during commission of a felony, etc. I know some law "expert" will tell me everything that's wrong with our idea but facts are, there are tons of laws in the books for this sort of thing but they aren't being used.