The Lure of Reel Crime
By DONALD BRADLEY
The Kansas City Star
For $22.50, the quality fishing reel offered on eBay by “Water Guy 57” was a steal — literally.
When Birkie Hillis got the reel, he realized it was his. Or had been until it had disappeared in April while he was fishing at Table Rock Lake .
The Arnold , Mo. , man contacted the Missouri Water Patrol, which just happened to be trying to untangle a rash of thefts this spring and summer at big fishing tournaments at Lake of the Ozarks , Table Rock and Truman Reservoir.
Pirated bass boats were being found adrift, stripped of hooks, lines and sinkers, outboards and towing motors, GPS devices and depth finders.
It was clear that thieves, working under darkness, were untying docked boats and towing them out onto the water for looting.
“They were targeting the professionals, but they would take from anybody with nice gear,” said Sgt. Jerry Callahan of the Water Patrol. “A lot of people don’t realize the value of that equipment.”
Authorities put the loss in the “tens of thousands of dollars” worth of rods, reels, tackle boxes and boating equipment and marine electronics.
Investigators were glad to get Hillis’ tip, but how could he be sure the particular reel was the same one stolen earlier? That’s when they learned Hillis was no drugstore fisherman. A small, worn spot meant he could “identify it from a hundred other reels just like it.”
Convinced, they set out to put “Water Guy 57” in the cooler.
It helped that the package sent to Hillis had a return address. EBay’s fraud division confirmed “Water Guy 57” was registered to Keith A. Clark, 7200 E. 229th St. in Peculiar in Cass County . And Clark for some time had been selling fishing gear online.
Cars from the Water Patrol and Cass County sheriff’s office soon pulled up at Clark ’s house. A search uncovered equipment including a van loaded with fishing rods.
Three of them, custom-made and running at $400 each, had been stolen July 10.
Clark , 51, was arrested and charged with receiving stolen property. He later posted $25,000 cash bond.
While Hillis has been asked by authorities not to discuss the case, that was not the case with Missouri ’s first fisherman.
“As an angler myself,” Gov. Jay Nixon said Monday in a statement, “I’m sure the sportsmen who’ll now have their gear returned are glad to know that the Water Patrol pursued this case.”
Callahan said that other suspects could be — ahem — reeled in.
A hearing for Clark is scheduled for September in Cass County . Neither Clark nor his attorney immediately returned a call seeking comment.
By DONALD BRADLEY
The Kansas City Star
For $22.50, the quality fishing reel offered on eBay by “Water Guy 57” was a steal — literally.
When Birkie Hillis got the reel, he realized it was his. Or had been until it had disappeared in April while he was fishing at Table Rock Lake .
The Arnold , Mo. , man contacted the Missouri Water Patrol, which just happened to be trying to untangle a rash of thefts this spring and summer at big fishing tournaments at Lake of the Ozarks , Table Rock and Truman Reservoir.
Pirated bass boats were being found adrift, stripped of hooks, lines and sinkers, outboards and towing motors, GPS devices and depth finders.
It was clear that thieves, working under darkness, were untying docked boats and towing them out onto the water for looting.
“They were targeting the professionals, but they would take from anybody with nice gear,” said Sgt. Jerry Callahan of the Water Patrol. “A lot of people don’t realize the value of that equipment.”
Authorities put the loss in the “tens of thousands of dollars” worth of rods, reels, tackle boxes and boating equipment and marine electronics.
Investigators were glad to get Hillis’ tip, but how could he be sure the particular reel was the same one stolen earlier? That’s when they learned Hillis was no drugstore fisherman. A small, worn spot meant he could “identify it from a hundred other reels just like it.”
Convinced, they set out to put “Water Guy 57” in the cooler.
It helped that the package sent to Hillis had a return address. EBay’s fraud division confirmed “Water Guy 57” was registered to Keith A. Clark, 7200 E. 229th St. in Peculiar in Cass County . And Clark for some time had been selling fishing gear online.
Cars from the Water Patrol and Cass County sheriff’s office soon pulled up at Clark ’s house. A search uncovered equipment including a van loaded with fishing rods.
Three of them, custom-made and running at $400 each, had been stolen July 10.
Clark , 51, was arrested and charged with receiving stolen property. He later posted $25,000 cash bond.
While Hillis has been asked by authorities not to discuss the case, that was not the case with Missouri ’s first fisherman.
“As an angler myself,” Gov. Jay Nixon said Monday in a statement, “I’m sure the sportsmen who’ll now have their gear returned are glad to know that the Water Patrol pursued this case.”
Callahan said that other suspects could be — ahem — reeled in.
A hearing for Clark is scheduled for September in Cass County . Neither Clark nor his attorney immediately returned a call seeking comment.