Roseville Police Chief Mike Blair said, “This case was a good example of neighbors helping neighbors. We encourage residents to call us anytime to report suspicious activity. It never hurts to ask officers to check something out.”
At 5:25 p.m. on February 4, a resident of the 1900 block of Sidesaddle Way reported that her home had been broken into within the past few hours. The burglar entered by breaking a rear window, and took video game players, video games, jewelry and coins. The victim’s next door neighbor told the officer that a door-to-door solicitor had come to his door earlier, selling magazines. The neighbor gave the officer a description of the solicitor, and the officer began checking the neighborhood.
Two hours later, a resident of the 1500 block of Oak Tree Drive, about three-quarters of a mile from the burglarized house, called police to report another solicitor going door to door, selling magazines. The resident was worried that the solicitor might be casing houses. Officers learned that several door-to-door solicitors were on foot in the area, and that a van was coming to pick them up soon. Officers located the van and interviewed the occupants.
One of the people in the van matched the description of the solicitor seen earlier on Sidesaddle Way, and had the stolen items from the burglarized house in his possession.
Jonothan Pelaske, 20, no permanent address, was arrested on suspicion of burglary, giving a false name, and two Redding Police Department warrants charging failure to appear. He is being held in the Placer County Jail on $40,000 bail.
Door-to-door soliciting is allowed in Roseville, as long as the solicitors have a valid Roseville business license and have registered with the police department. Residents who don’t want to be contacted by solicitors should post a “no soliciting” sign near their door.
