Man accused of looting storm-damaged home tracked down by neighbors
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A man accused of looting a home damaged in an ice storm is now behind bars, thanks to the quick thinking and detective work of a neighbor.
“I knew our three trees fell, I just knew it,” Shu-Ju Wang said.
Like many in the Portland area, Wang and her husband are now staying in a hotel after their home and one of their cars was destroyed by falling trees in the recent winter storm. But when the ice hit, they weren’t able to go back and check in until a few days later, returning to find their place was looted, which was first reported by The Oregonian/OregonLive.
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“That was when we discovered that people had been in the house and had taken his cello, all his work electronics and all my jewelry,” Wang said.
Sharing the news with her neighbor, James Tabor, he immediately got to work looking through his Ring camera footage, finding just one truck coming through around midnight during the ice storm.
“I immediately looked at my security cameras and, keep in mind, our streets are covered in ice, barely anybody was driving,” Tabor said. “One truck a little after midnight went by two different times, 12:03 and again 12:48, and I knew right away, they were the ones.”
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The time frame matched a CO2 detector sensor that picked up data on someone in Wang’s home that same night. When they were alerted to a stolen pair of Apple headphones pinging a location, Tabor tracked it down.
“I was thinking okay, this will ping at an apartment complex, but the police won’t know which apartment and they’re swamped,” Tabor said. “For grins and giggles, I went out there to see if I could find the pickup truck and sure enough, I did. I found him getting into his apartment, he was unloading a lot of garbage bags of stuff.”
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Tabor and Wang turned the info over to police and in no time, 54-year-old Jack Kowalski was arrested, a suspect with a lengthy criminal history including past burglary and theft charges. The arrest aftermath was posted on social media by Portland Police’s Central Bike Squad after a warrant was served at a Tigard apartment with the help of Tigard Police and the Washington County Sheriff’s Office. They reportedly found Kowalski hiding in a wooden trunk in the bedroom, while also finding a number of stolen goods from more than just Wang’s home.
“It was devastating enough that she and many others lost their houses completely but to be looted? That’s a new low,” Tabor said.
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Despite the troubles, Wang says she’s thankful neighbors like Tabor stepped up and hopes others will give that same care in their own neighborhoods.
“We have such great community care. We’re really, really lucky. We had a lucky escape and we’ve had community support,” Wang said. “Lots of people need help. Please reach out and give them a hand.”
Kowalski was in court earlier on Wednesday. He’s expected to be indicted on Feb. 8.
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