Dunedin, FL -- Two men are in jail, charged with breaking into more than a hundred storage units over the past three weeks in Northern Pinellas County.
And investigators say the case was cracked by a woman determined to recover a family heirloom.
Sheila Annel couldn't just sit by and wait. Her family's rare, antique music box was stolen from a local storage unit, and simply meant too much to them.
Annel was so distraught about the theft that she called local antique stores begging them to be on the lookout for it.
"I banked on the chance that somebody, knowing what this is, would hear about it," she said.
There was no mistaking the Regina #40.
Made in the 1800's, it's thick, rotating metal plates use brail-like bumps to produce a distinct tone.
Within a day, Sheila got a call.
Within hours, detectives were on it, tracking down and following 30-year-old Andrew Dutton. They pulled Dutton over, "and then 'lo and behold there was the music box in the back seat of his car," said Sgt. Tom Nestor, spokesman for the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
Detectives then linked Dutton to a second suspect, 28-year-old Carlton Strawderman.
At his house, they say they found tools, guns, fishing poles and other items, stolen from the storage units.
At least 123 of the storage rooms have been broken into, say investigators. Most were at Dunedin Mini-storage on Main Street and Tropicana Storage on US-19 in Clearwater.
"Go look. See. If they've been broken into they need to contact the sheriff's office because some of their family heirlooms may be missing," urged Annel.
Investigators want those who've lost items to give them a call.
The arrests are no doubt a relief for any victim. But for the Anell family, it's truly music to their ears.
Pinellas County investigators say they expect more charges to be filed in this case. The city of Largo and others have similar cases that may be linked to the same two suspects.
10 News