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Jefferson County deputies arrest 1, searching for others after recovering guns stolen from vehicles

Deputies continue to remind gun owners not to leave weapons in unlocked vehicles.
Credit: JCSO

BEAUMONT, Texas — Gun owners are being reminded again to secure their weapons and not leave them in unlocked vehicles after deputies arrested a man with stolen guns following several auto burglaries Sunday and Tuesday morning.

Deputies with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office issued the reminder after a Houston man, Jeremiah Butts , 21, was arrested with several stolen guns following several auto burglaries at a Jefferson County RV park early Tuesday morning according to a news release from the Jefferson County Sheriff's office.

Surveillance video from early Sunday morning showed several people getting out of a dark colored, four door, 2010 Ford Fusion after it pulled into the AAA RV park on Garden Drive in the Beauxart Gardens area.

The car’s Texas license plate number is NVT-4082. 

Several unlocked vehicles at the RV park were burglarized and the suspects left with a Ruger LC9 9 mm handgun and a Mossberg .308 rifle among other items the release said.

Credit: JCSO

On Tuesday morning at about 1 a.m. a deputy patrolling the RV park noticed several vehicles with their interior lights on, which is often a sign of a recent burglary the release said.

As another deputy approached the area the dark colored Ford Fusion was spotted leaving the RV park the release said.

Deputies were able to stop the car and arrest Butts, who was driving, after it turned onto a dead-end road. At least two other suspects are still at large according to the release.

After searching the cart deputies found several stolen items including two handguns. One of the handguns had been stolen minutes before in the RV park and the other was stolen during a November auto burglary in Port Arthur the release noted.

Butts was arrested on a charge of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.

A warrant has been issued for the November burglary in Port Arthur and deputies anticipate more charges.

Deputies are continuing to investigate and search for the other suspects.

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If you have information about a crime you could earn a cash reward of up to $1000 by providing an ANONYMOUS tip to Crime Stoppers of Southeast Texas.

Call 833-TIPS (8477) or download the P3Tips App on your mobile device to submit your tip anonymously.

This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.

MORE| Reminder to Lock Your Vehicles and Remove Firearms

From a Jefferson County Sheriff's Office news release...

On Sunday morning, 12/20/20 around 5:30 a.m., several unlocked vehicles were burglarized at the AAA RV Park, 4656 S. Garden Drive, in Beauxart Gardens.

Surveillance video shows that a dark colored 2010 Ford Fusion 4 dr. Tx NVT-4082 pulled into the RV park and several subjects got out of the vehicle. They prowled vehicles searching for unlocked doors. They were successful in finding unlocked vehicles and items that they stole include Ruger LC9 9mm handgun and a Mossberg .308 rifle.

This morning, 12/22/2020, around 1:00 a.m., a JCSO Patrol Sgt. was patrolling the RV park and noticed several vehicles with their inside lights on indicating that they had just been burglarized. As another Deputy approached, the same suspect vehicle was observed leaving the park. As the Deputy turned around to stop them, they turned down a long private drive with no outlet. As the Deputy approached, he was able to detain the driver identified as 21 year old Jeremiah Butts of Houston, Texas. The other suspects are still at large.

A search of the vehicle yielded several stolen items including two handguns. One of those guns had been stolen in an auto burglary in Port Arthur in November and the other was stolen just prior to Deputies arrival.

Butts was arrested and booked into the Jefferson County Jail for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Felon. A warrant was also issued today for the Auto Burglary back in November. This investigation continues and additional charges are anticipated.

If you have information about these Auto Burglaries or the suspects still at large, contact Crime Stoppers at 409-833-TIPS (8477), log on to www.833TIPS.com or download the P3 app. You will not be asked your name and you could be eligible for a cash reward.

As a reminder, please keep your vehicles locked and remove your firearms!

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