Suspect in multiple San Francisco burglaries arrested
SAN FRANCISCO -- Police in San Francisco on Monday announced the recent arrest of a suspect in connection with multiple burglaries committed across the city since June.
The first incident was reported on June 14 in the Bayview neighborhood. Officers responded to the 2300 block of 3rd Street and met with the victim who said an unknown suspect broke into their business while it was closed. The victim said the suspect initially stole a safe, returning later with two additional suspects to steal other items, including a cash register.
The second incident was reported on the morning of July 31 at a business on the 1400 block of Haight Street. Police met with the victim who said an unknown suspect broke into the business while it was closed, stealing a cash register and lottery tickets. The third incident targeted a business in Chinatown on the 600 block of Grant Street early the morning of August 4. Officers were called to a possible burglary in progress at 2:15 a.m., but the unknown suspect was gone when police arrived. The business owner told police the suspect had stolen a cash register while the business was closed.
The San Francisco Police Department Burglary Detail led the investigations, obtaining surveillance video from security cameras for all three incidents and eventually identifying the suspect the robberies as 28-year-old San Francisco resident Molimau Masaniai. Investigators developed probable cause and arrested Masaniai on the 100 block of Turk Street last Thursday. Police also excecuted a search warrant on Masaniai's residence at that time.
Masaniai was booked at the San Francisco County Jail on three counts each of burglary and vandalism in addition to one count of possession of burglary tools. While an arrest has been made in the burglaries, this remains an open and active investigation. Anyone with information regarding the incidents or any additional burglaries Masaniai might be connected to is asked to call the SFPD Tip Line at 415-575-4444 or Text a Tip to TIP411 and begin the text message with "SFPD." Tipsters may remain anonymous.
