A Quakertown man is facing felony theft and weapons charges after he allegedly stole from multiple vehicles on Skippack Pike during the early-morning hours of April 5.
Whitpain Township Police were dispatched to the 1200 block of Skippack Pike at 9:46 a.m. for a report of a theft from a vehicle. The victim told police they discovered their glove box was open and both a handgun and loose change were missing from their vehicle. Surveillance footage from the home showed a male suspect entering two parked vehicles at 2:08 a.m., police said.
A short time later, police were dispatched to a neighboring home for another report of a theft from a vehicle. The victim at the second location told police they entered their vehicle and found the contents of their center console were scattered across the interior of the vehicle. Additionally, $250 that was being kept in the vehicle was missing, according to the criminal complaint.
All the vehicles were unlocked at the time they were entered.
Investigators began looking at surveillance footage from nearby locations, including Wawa and the Centre Square Fire Company, all which depicted the same male suspect walking in the area and making a purchase at Wawa. They were ultimately able to positively identify the suspect, as the Wawa surveillance footage matched a pedestrian that police had helped several weeks prior, according to charging documents.
At 3:40 a.m. on March 15, police observed a male trip and fall while walking along the 1200 block of Dekalb Pike. Police stopped to make sure the man was uninjured and offered him a ride home, however he declined. During the interaction, the man identified himself as 44-year-old Stephen Keyser, and investigators said Keyser was the same man captured on all of the surveillance footage from the theft from vehicles, the report states.
As a result of the investigation, Keyser has been charged with felony counts of theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property, and firearms not to be carried without a license, along with to misdemeanor counts of theft from a motor vehicle.
Charges were filed against Keyser on April 7, and he was taken into custody on April 25, at which point District Judge John Kessler set bail at $10,000 unsecured. His next court appearance is a preliminary hearing on May 5 at 9 a.m. in front of Judge Kessler.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause.
See also:
Hatfield Woman Spit on State Troopers, Threatened to Kill Them During DUI Arrest, Police Say
Two Months After Woman’s Body Found in Skippack Parking Lot, Local Man Charged
Bucks Co. Man Accused of Sexually Abusing Perkasie Teen, Police Say
Second Juvenile Charged as Adult in Sellersville Kidnapping Conspiracy, Police Say
