Bluetooth headphones a clue in gas station burglary

Have your bluetooth headphones ever abruptly disconnected while listening to music at work? You might think your device ran out of battery, or maybe you stepped too far away from your phone. 

When her music stopped playing, one local gas station worker was quick to realize something more sinister was going on — she was getting burglarized. 

A clerk at QuikTrip, 20530 W. John Wayne Pkwy, flagged down police just before 9 a.m. Wednesday and said her phone was stolen. Her iPhone 14 Pro Max had been on the counter, and she was listening to music when her Bluetooth headphones suddenly disconnected.  

The store’s surveillance footage showed 41-year-old Carl M. Schwarz snatching the phone off the register counter, according to a probable-cause statement obtained by InMaricopa. 

Officers found Schwarz nearby, where he admitted to stealing the phone and ditching it near the post office. 

Schwarz guided the police to Hathaway Avenue, between North Justin Drive and North Condrey Avenue, where the phone was found. Officers reported the phone sustained new damage. 

Schwarz was arrested and booked into the Pinal County jail on two felony charges of theft and criminal damage. 

He faces more than three years in prison.