Criminals Celebrating End of Pandemic, Too

Looking for a sign that the pandemic is over? Criminals are getting back to work.

Schulenburg Police Chief Troy Brenek said some crimes nearly came to a halt during the later half of last year and the early part of this year. But he said activity at his department is getting back to pre-pandemic levels.

“People are starting to move again,” Brenek said. “Criminals are able to blend in more now that you can move out and about. During COVID, crime was almost not occuring on a physical level because no one was doing anything. Now that people are out and about moving, traffic on Interstate 10 has picked up, people are willing to go about and do these things. It’s back to business as usual.”

A few recent cases in Schulenburg illustrate the point.

KC Hall Burglary

Someone broke into the Schulenburg KC Hall and stole several hundred dollars in cash and a number of blank checks.

Brenek said the hall manager discovered and reported the burglary around 8 a.m. on May 27. The culprit or culprits entered by kicking-in a side door that leads to the hall’s bar area, Brenek said.

“Upon investigation, it was determined that the door was not secured properly,” Brenek said.

Brenek said $600 to $1,000 in cash was taken. He said someone tried but failed to cash one of the checks.

“We served some subpoenas and are waiting for some information to come back,” Brenek said. “We’re confident we’re headed in the right direction with whom we think are responsible.”

Catalytic Converter Theft

Then around 6:30 p.m. on June 4, someone stole the catalytic converter from Schulenburg Police Officer Rusty Roggenkamp’s private vehicle, a Toyota Tundra. Brenek said Roggenkamp was off-duty and dining at Lucy Tequilas’s Restaurant in Schulenburg when the theft occurred. He said the thief used a saw to cut the device from the Toyota’s exhaust system.

“It probably took less than five minutes,” Brenek said.

A suspect and a driver were seen leaving the parking lot in a grey Jeep, Brenek said.

Brenek said catalytic converters contain precious metals including platinum, palladium and rhodium.

The devices can be sold for cash at metal recycling businesses, he said.

ID Theft Update

In other news, Brenek said his staff has remained busy contacting victims of a massive identity theft case that his department began investigating in March.

A suspect, Tyson Shimcek, 37 of Weimar, was indicted last month on felony charges in connection with the case. Initially, Schulenburg police reported that they found identifying information linked to over 400 individuals. Police say the victims’ personal information was purchased on on the “Dark Web.”

Brenek told the Record this week that his investigators have since identified over 6,000 victims, including both individuals and businesses. Most of those are located in the New York area, he said. The victims’ information included social security numbers, account numbers, passwords, mothers’ maiden names and more.

Brenek said his small staff has been busy with the task of contacting and obtaining statements from the victims.

“We’re still in the process of contacting as many as we can,” Brenek said. “It’s pretty overwhelming for a small department like ours. There may be more charges pending.”