Man stole from museum donation boxes, broke into SLO County boatyard, police say
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A man was arrested in Morro Bay on Monday after police say he broke into the city boatyard and stole money from donation boxes at the Maritime Museum.
Shane Willhite, 45, was taken into custody Monday morning after police responded to a reported disturbance at 740 Quintana Road, the Albertsons store in Morro Bay, a Wednesday news release from the Morro Bay Police Department said.
The disturbance call came after police responded to a reported burglary at the Morro Bay Maritime Museum on the Embarcadero earlier that morning, according to the release.
During the initial call, police found that three donation boxes at the museum had been vandalized and an unknown amount of money had been taken, police said. The nearby city boatyard had also been broken into.
Surveillance footage revealed that a white male wearing a plaid shirt, jeans and a gray backpack, with a white shirt covering his face, had stolen from the donation boxes, according to the release.
Then, at around 11:15 a.m., police responded to a separate call reporting a disturbance, the release said. On scene, police discovered Willhite wearing clothing matching the suspect in the surveillance footage reviewed earlier that morning.
Police found in Willhite’s possession items that had allegedly been stolen from the boatyard as well as a pair of bolt cutters, the release said.
Police reported that Willhite admitted using the bolt cutters to enter the boatyard and gain access to the donation boxes.
Willhite was booked into SLO County Jail on charges of petty theft with a prior, along with vandalism and possession of burglary tools, according to the release.
Police said the investigation and search for additional victims was ongoing. Anyone with information was encouraged to contact the Morro Bay Police Department.
