In two separate incidents in Brandon Township, trust by homeowners led to them being robbed.
But last week, the perpetrators were brought to justice.
David Howe, 50, of Pontiac, was arraigned on a charge of larceny on Jan. 23 at 52-2 District Court. On the same day, also at 52-2, Molly Guzman was arraigned on two felony counts of larceny in a building.
According to police reports, Brandon deputies responded to the 2100 block of Hummer Lake Road on Aug. 18 for a larceny complaint. The homeowner said she and her husband had befriended Howe, who was homeless and living at the Grace Center of Hope in Pontiac. The woman said they would pick him up and he would do odd jobs for them. They had discovered months earlier that he had stolen a 100-ounce bar of silver from them and forgave him, but denied him access to their home. However, the woman then discovered some empty jewelry boxes near their outside burn pit and said Howe knew the jewelry, valued at more than $110,000, was hidden in their basement’s drop ceiling.
In the case of Guzman, she was hired to clean a township home in the 2500 block of Iid’s Way. On Jan. 5, the homeowner discovered several thousand dollars worth of jewelry missing as well as a digital camera. Her co-worker told her that Guzman, who also cleaned his house and was his nanny, had stolen from them and confessed.