Burglar wearing ankle monitor caught after Soulard spree
ST. LOUIS — Police say an 18-year-old St. Louis man is in jail without bond after he allegedly burglarized nearly a dozen businesses while wearing a GPS ankle monitor. The burglar hit a number of St. Louis’s most popular establishments, from Big Daddy’s Bar to Donut Drive-In. But court records reveal he also left a digital footprint behind.
Surveillance video from Big Daddy’s Bar in Soulard shows a man now identified as 18-year-old Leslie James III and others breaking into the establishment back in the early hours of April 10th. They were wearing masks at the time, but video still captured a clear shot of the burglars’ faces.
On Tuesday, authorities arrested James and charged him with eight counts of burglary, eight counts of stealing, three counts of attempted burglary, and eleven counts of property damage.
Big Daddy’s owner, Jon Vieluf, shared his reaction to learning James was wearing an ankle monitor at the time of the alleged crime.
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“Criminals are not known to be the smartest sometimes, and that proves it,” Vieluf said.
Vieluf said he hopes other thieves see this story and think twice before targeting businesses, especially now that most have surveillance cameras installed.
“Eventually, you will get caught. People talk. And, I say, people dumb enough to do stuff like this talk even more,” Vieluf said.
In addition to Big Daddy’s Bar, court records reveal James targeted nine businesses on April 10th, including Donut Drive-In on Chippewa. The police said he stole an empty cash register there.
A week later, James allegedly targeted two more businesses, including My Marie Restaurant on Cherokee Street.
Owner Marie Louis-Jeune said James shattered her glass door with a brick and stole hundreds of dollars in cash from inside.
“I’m still in shock. I’m scared now to stay here late,” Louis-Jeune said.
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Louis-Jeune said she still feels her business is in a safe location and considers this overnight incident an isolated one. She said while she’s happy James is behind bars, these kinds of incidents can still be very damaging to small businesses like hers.
“The message I want to tell them is, please stop the violence. Stop the stealing,” she said.
Court records also reveal James was driving a stolen car during the break-ins. He’s being held in the St. Louis City Jail without bond.
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