It’s been proven, over and over again, that there’s absolutely no such thing as a smart criminal. Most if not all of them leave a little something behind, some folks call a calling card–it’s a way investigators can trace the crime back to the one committing it. There’s only one thing investigators like better than a calling card–your cell phone. And, as Cody Wilkins learned real fast, they like that a lot.
A major snow storm had gone through Silver Spring, leaving much of the area without power, two days before he thought it’d be fun to go get himself some free stuff. So he had a dual purpose for breaking into one gentleman’s home–the obtaining of free stuff, and to juice up his phone. He figured he’d have time to grab it on the way out, after he’d loaded up on what he came for. So he plugged it in, and went about his business. The owner’s son came home unexpectedly, cutting his not very well planned routine just a touch short. Wilkins promptly took off for home and, unfortunately for him, neglected to stop long enough to collect his phone, which was still happily charging when police showed up. They picked a random number, and happened to get hold of his girlfriend, who gave them Wilkins’s name. They showed up at his house to personally tell him he left his phone, and invite him to jail to talk about it. He’s now up on 10 other burglery charges besides that one. But his phone’s charged.