Interfaith Donation Box Burglarized

TCSO booking photo

Sonora, CA – Two suspects claimed they were trying to put items into an Interfaith Community Social Services donations container, but security camera footage told a different story.

An alarm on the donation box door signaled to Tuolumne County Sheriff’s dispatch that someone was attempting to break into the container at the facility located on Striker Court in Sonora. When deputies arrived on the scene, they found 37-year-old Michael Douglass of Jamestown and 32-year-old Lauren Russell of Coulterville in the parking lot. The pair had several piles of miscellaneous clothing and other items around them. The two claimed they were actually there donating some unwanted clothing, according to sheriff’s officials.

That story fell apart when deputies looked at surveillance footage from Interfaith security cameras. Douglass and Russell were caught on tape pulling into the parking lot, approaching the donation container, opening the donation container, and pulling several bags out. Subsequently, both were arrested for commercial burglary of the donation storage container.