Draper

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UNION COUNTY — Detectives with the Union County Sheriff’s Office have arrested a Jonesville man in connection with two burglaries at a Union County business.

Willis Everette Draper Jr., 26, 249 Hames Avenue, Jonesville is charged by the sheriff’s office with burglary first-degree, burglary second-degree, and two counts of petit larceny.

In a statement released Friday afternoon announcing Draper’s arrest, Sheriff David Taylor that the burglary second-degree charge and one of the petit larceny charges stem from a break-in that took place Dec. 4, 2012 in which $1,800 in cash was stolen. Taylor said the burglary first-degree charge and the other petit larceny charge stem from a second break-in that occurred on April 8, 2013 in which a handgun valued at less than $2,000 was stolen. He said the gun has been recovered but the money has not.

In a telephone interview with The Union Daily Times, Taylor said that both break-ins occurred at Small World Recycling. He said that Draper was taken into custody at the sheriff’s office Thursday afternoon.

Taylor said Draper’s arrest is a result of the emphasis his office places on solving burglaries and other property crimes.

“We’ve been putting an extra effort into clearing burglaries in Union County,” Taylor said Friday afternoon. “It’s what it said in the State Uniform Crime Report, we are above the state average in clearing cases because we’re not overburdening our detectives with caseloads. They are able to spend more time on individual cases.”

Arrests

The Union County Sheriff’s Office reported the following arrest:

— Kevin Wayne Haney, 25, of 820 Flat Drive, Buffalo, was charged with trespassing around 9:30 a.m. on April 11. According to the incident report, officers were dispatched to a residence on Flat Drive in reference to a subject being held at gunpoint. Upon arrival, the owner of the property stated he caught Haney gathering up scrap metal on his property and that Haney then threatened to hit him with a shovel. The man said he drew his gun in self defense.

Incidents

The Union County Sheriff’s Office reported the following incidents:

— A resident of Johns Street, Union, reported on April 11 that when he returned home, his storm door was open and his front door was unlocked. Items missing from the home include a 50-inch LG plasma TV valued at $1,400, a 30-30 Marlin rifle with scope valued at $200, and a .410 Remington shotgun valued at $200. The case was turned over to investigations.

— Officers responded to Kelly One Stop, located at 1508 Jonesville Lockhart Highway, Union, in response to a man coming into the store, cursing, slamming the front door and causing a disturbance due to the store not being able to cash his pay check.

The Union Public Safety Department reported the following incidents:

— A resident of North Evans Street, Union, reported on April 11 that someone broke into his storage building by tearing the door off and took a green Weed Eater brand push mower valued at $100. The case was turned over to investigations.