Police seek items' owners

Cell phones, portable DVD players, golf clubs, a video camera, digital cameras, radar detectors, purses and a speaker box.

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These are just some of the items Columbia County Sheriff's Office officials believe were stolen during recent thefts from vehicles.

Now they are attempting to find the owners.

The property was seized from the Martinez apartment of Joseph Cain Smith, 23, after he and his companion Heather Nicole Long, 27, were arrested March 23 in connection with a string of thefts from vehicles on Laniers Way in Martinez.

"We've returned quite a bit of property," Columbia County sheriff's Capt. Steve Morris said Tuesday. "There's quite a bit of property still that remains unclaimed."

Morris said that after the arrest of Smith and Long, both of Martinez, police seized property from Smith's apartment . They believe the items were stolen from vehicles mostly in Columbia and Richmond counties.

"We suspect they may be connected to entering autos cases in Richmond County," Morris said.

Sheriff's investigators identified and returned as much property as possible. The remaining property, about 30 items, remains unclaimed. The sheriff's office has fielded nearly 100 calls about it, Morris said.

He believes the remaining property came from unreported thefts in Columbia County or thefts in Richmond County.

The couple was charged with six counts of entering an auto to commit theft. Smith is being held in the Columbia County Detention Center without bond.

Long was released March 24 after posting a $45,600 bond, according to jail records.

Morris said Smith has refused to identify any property he legitimately owns or state where some of the property might have been stolen from.

Anyone missing items stolen from their vehicle from Feb. 23 to March 23 is urged to contact the sheriff's office.

If the property is not claimed a judge will issue a condemnation order, Morris said.

"It will either be destroyed, sold at a sheriff's auction or used within the agency," he said.

To identify and claim property, call the sheriff's office's Criminal Investigations Division at (706) 541-1044.