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Courtesy photos / Volusia Jail mugs. John Collier, 22, and Justin Schaffer, 21, were both arrested Tuesday at their residence near New Smyrna Beach on charges of burglary of a conveyance, burglary of an occupied dwelling and possession of burglary tools .
NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- The arrest of two men near New Smyrna Beach for breaking into a car led to a small treasure trove of stolen goods in one suspect's home, giving Volusia County Sheriff's investigators a chance to close out several car burglary cases and return some valuables to their owners.
After executing a search warrant Tuesday, investigators found more than 30 stolen items such as iPods, watches, GPS units, weapons and tools.
"The suspects told deputies that they had been hunting for unlocked car doors for weeks and stealing whatever they could from the unsecured vehicles," Sheriff's spokesman Brandon Haught said. "They then attempted to sell the items on eBay. One of the men said he was doing it because the economy is poor and he doesn't have a job."
The pair's plans fell apart, though, when a victim found 22-year-old John Collier in her car at 1 a.m. Tuesday, Haught said. The woman hollered at Collier to get out of her car, which was parked in her driveway on South Atlantic Avenue, prompting him to run away.
The woman then called the Sheriff's Office. Responding deputies set up a perimeter and a K-9 unit got to work tracking the suspects. They were found hiding on a porch about a block away.
Collier admitted to being in the victim's car, and 21-year-old Justin Shaffer served as a lookout, Haught said.
"Collier also said that he had been stealing from cars for a few weeks, which led investigators to getting a search warrant for his house at 825 Oakview Drive," Haught said.
Collier and Shaffer were charged with burglary of a conveyance, burglary of an occupied dwelling and possession of burglary tools.
Both men were transported to the Volusia County Branch Jail in Daytona Beach.
More charges are possible as investigators look into the other burglaries the men may have been involved in. A few of the stolen items have been returned to their owners, but investigators still have several items on hand.
If anyone in the New Smyrna Beach area has been the victim of a car burglary in the past few weeks and believes they can identify their possessions by serial number or accurate description, please contact Sheriff's Sgt. Sean Gowan at (386) 423-3301.