In August and September, Garland Police received 22 reports of Ford pickup tailgate thefts, of which more than half were white (common and easier to paint) and were valued up to $1200 each. The thefts seemed confined to the area around SH-190 and Pleasant Valley Rd in north Garland and around Broadway Blvd in the south.
 

Office Galloway explains to a Channel 11 TV reporter how officers located several stolen tailgates that were listed on CraigsList.com. Source: KTVT-TV video

One advantage for Garland residents is the Neighborhood Policer Officer program that I've mentioned many times. These officers have a "beat" and look for related crimes and trends specific to an area that might be harder to spot with conventional investigation methods. Such was the case when Officers Robert Duncan and Jody Galloway noticed the localized rash of tailgate thefts.
 
Another Garland police officer, one of the victims, reported purchasing a replacement tailgate from CraigsList.com. The investigating officers checked the website and found several tailgates listed, all at just two phone numbers. One was a Sachse number just outside Garland off Pleasant Valley Rd.
 
Officers checked with a local Ford dealer for a way to identify the tailgates. They learned that on Ford trucks the key that works the doors and ignition is the same for the lock in the tailgate. One key fits all the locks on the truck and only on that truck.
 
They then asked the Garland officer who had purchased the replacement tailgate if they could compare keys from other victims to see if any would fit. The second try worked the lock, the key supplied by the first victim to report one of the thefts. A few more tests and officers verified that the purchased tailgate was the same tailgate that had been reported stolen. It was time to move in. The officers obtained arrest and search warrants for the subject and for his residence.
 
"I actually made a call to the [seller] and requested to come out and purchase a tailgate," said NPO Jody Galloway. An officer then purchased a tailgate from the subject for $150, which also turned out to be stolen. Sachse and Garland police officers cooperated to arrest the Sachse man and two other subjects that were also involved in the thefts.
 
A total of 6 tailgates were recovered from the residence. Officers contacted the victims and had them bring their keys to the police station to check their keys with the recovered tailgates. All six tailgates were returned.
 
KTVT-TV Channel 11 News covered the story of the thefts and arrest. NPO Robert Duncan told the reporter the key to not becoming a victim is to make sure the tailgate is locked, "Just like locking the doors to your car, just put the key in it, turn it and lock it. If they can't open it, they can't steal it."
 
LOCK THOSE TAILGATES AND SAVE YOURSELF THE HEADACHES!
 
The video at the Chanell 11 site features Officers Duncan and Galloway. Check it out!