Jewelry thief nabbed near P.G.

It wasn’t a big theft as jewelry store heists go, but the Independence police didn’t let this thief slip through their fingers. On Saturday morning Glenda Pantin was in her store on Prince Street when Rene Ortiz entered and asked to see some jewelry. Pantin says she placed a gold chain, esclavas and a ring on the counter and Ortiz grabbed them and ran. Independence police searched the area but Ortiz and the eight hundred dollars worth of gold were no where to be found. However, on Sunday night, an officer from Independence was on a bus heading for P.G. when he recognized the suspect trying to flag down a bus nine miles outside of Punta Gorda. The officer arrested him and took him to the P.G. Police Station.