Rockim Prowell Los Angeles area black man used face mask to look like white man to carry up to 30 burglaries in affluent areas in Southern California.
A black man allegedly used a life-like mask complete with fake hair and glasses to disguise himself as a ‘white man’ as he committed countless burglaries in the Los Angeles area in the past year.
Police released surveillance images of the suspect in a bid to capture the wanted man but something was off.
‘It was odd this burglar’s mouth was always open when seen on video surveillance,’ LAPD Pacific wrote on Twitter, which has since been deleted. ‘When he was caught breaking into another home we discovered why.’
Rockim Prowell, 30, allegedly wore the disguise to commit about 30 home burglaries in the Southern California area starting last April, Fox News reported.
He was finally caught on May 2 after he was pulled over in Beverly Hills.
Police search links suspect to string of robberies
That’s when police found the mask and other items that connected him to Beverly Hills break-ins last July and on April 20, where he stole flat screen TVs, Beverly Hills police said.
Prowell was arrested and charged with two counts of burglary, two counts of grand theft and one count of vandalism.
The license plates attached to Prowell’s car were allegedly stolen, according to police.
But there was more to come.
Linked to further crime spree?
Beverly Hills detectives conducted a search warrant at Prowell’s home in Inglewood, California, where police said they found stolen items that connected Prowell to dozens of other home break-ins in mostly wealthy areas in Southern California.
Beverly Hills police are working with the Los Angeles Police Department and law enforcement in in Newport Beach, an affluent city in Orange County, to determine if he is linked to home burglaries in those cities.
He’s currently out on bail but could face more charges. Prowell is scheduled to appear in court on May 25, as per jail records.
