Two men were arrested after they allegedly broke into 24 cars in an overflow parking lot near the Bank of America Stadium during the Carolina Panthers’ playoff game Saturday.
Naim Stroman-El and Anthony Canada, both 35, and a third suspect who is still at large allegedly busted into the vehicles belonging to fans in attendance for the Panthers loss to the Los Angeles Rams.
Diehard Panthers fans Charles Dillon and Justin Grigg were debating about a last-second call made during the game when they reached their respective cars, which both had the driver’s side window smashed in.
“It was not the sight you wanted to see coming back from a really fun night,” Grigg told WSOC.
“It definitely added insult to injury,” he added.
Grigg’s car was surrounded by an array of his personal belongings the thieves discarded as trash, including breast milk pumping equipment.
Dillon’s car was wrecked after the crooks busted through the car’s topper that covered his trunk and window.
He told the outlet that $200 in cash was stolen from his console, but admitted it was his own fault for leaving such a hefty roll of bills there in the first place.
At least four firearms were also stolen during the break-ins, according to an affidavit obtained by WIS.
The suspects, though, didn’t make it very far before they were apprehended.
A person perched on a nearby rooftop during the game spotted a group of people smashing windows with a chain and called 911.
The caller identified the suspects’ vehicle as a white SUV, and cops pulled over a similar white GMC Yukon in the area just five minutes later, WSOC reported.
Two suspects leapt out of the passenger side door and tried to make a run for it. A third suspect managed to escape, but cops nabbed Canada and Stroman-El.
When police were searching their vehicle, they found one of the stolen guns concealed beneath a floorboard.
Officers scoured the rest of the area and found three to five guns abandoned on the side of the road, according to the affidavit.
Police failed to secure the guns, which were later claimed by a group of rowdy juveniles, the affidavit said.
Canada and Stroman-El face 39 charges each, including at least 23 counts of breaking and entering into a motor vehicle.
Stroman-El is being held at Mecklenburg County Jail on a steep $200,000 bond. Canada is behind bars at the same facility on a lesser $40,000 bond.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
