Curtis Hairston made thousands of dollars by burglarizing more than a dozen businesses in the Northeast and North Philadelphia in June, authorities say. The long arm of the law finally caught up with him on Friday.
Philadelphia police credit an e-mailed tip for helping them identify and find Hairston, 51, of the 2000 block of Walnut Lane in West Oak Lane.
That’s just the kind of help investigators had been looking for since they released surveillance video of one of the commercial break-ins in mid-June.
Hairston has been charged with 14 burglaries so far and remains under investigation in connection with other unsolved cases, said Lt. Mark Burgmann of Northeast Detectives.
Typically, Hairston would enter the stores after closing time by prying open a door or smashing through a window. He would then grab cash from the register and flee, Burgmann said.
The first two break-ins attributed to Hairston actually occurred on May 30, when he allegedly broke into David’s Bridal at 6595 Roosevelt Blvd. and Spanish Island at 6539 Roosevelt Blvd.
On June 6, he allegedly burglarized Via Napoli Restaurant at 2500 Welsh Road, East King Buffet at 9171 Roosevelt Blvd. and Asante Market at 2477 Grant Ave.
On June 9, he broke into Doughnut Plus and MTT Sales and Service, both at 5601 N. Fifth St., Burgmann said.
On June 12, Hairston was responsible for break-ins at Adam’s Cleaners, 8206 Roosevelt Blvd; Big Al’s Pizza, 8212 Roosevelt Blvd.; Happy Garden, 9916 Roosevelt Blvd.; Angelo’s Pizza, 9918 Roosevelt Blvd.; and Fat Jack’s Barbecue, 10090 Roosevelt Blvd.
Finally, on June 23, he allegedly burglarized Palace Roller Skating, at 11586 Roosevelt Blvd, and Extra Space Storage, at 12005 Roosevelt Blvd.
Hairston is being held at Montgomery County Prison in lieu of $10,000 bail. Last year, he was convicted of burglary in that jurisdiction and was sentenced to eight to 23 months in jail, followed by three years probation.
Hairston has another burglary case pending in Philadelphia stemming from a July 4 arrest. He is scheduled for an arraignment on Aug. 15. ••
