For many Cal Poly students, not much thought is put into where quarters go when doing laundry. But some people’s quarters might be going into the pockets of laundry room burglars.
Three apartment complexes in San Luis Obispo had their laundry rooms burglarized last week. According to a news release from the San Luis Obispo Police Department (SLOPD), complexes at 2828 and 2933 Augusta St. and 721 Johnson Ave. all had their laundry rooms broken into and had an undisclosed amount of quarters stolen from the machines.
San Luis Obispo is no stranger to laundry room burglaries, with a total of 15 since 2014. According to SLOPD, these instances are usually committed by repeat offenders. Max Wilkins, 36, was arrested in 2014 while robbing a laundry room on Mill Street and was believed to have committed at least five of these 15 burglaries.
The Arroyo Grande Police Department (AGPD) reported a similar incident on Nov. 21. A man broke into the laundry room of an apartment complex on S Elm Street in Arroyo Grande and stole quarters from the machines.
AGPD reported $1,600 worth of quarters was stolen. Surveillance cameras in the apartment complex’s laundry room caught footage of the suspect.
AGPD Sergeant Shawn Cosgrove said they believe there is a connection between this incident and the incidents in San Luis Obispo.