By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
An Atmore man was arrested by city police last Friday, May 13, several hours after he was seen on surveillance video entering a pair of unlocked vehicles at a local funeral parlor and taking property from them.
Sgt. Darrell McMann reported that the break-ins happened around 3:55 a.m. at Petty Funeral Home on East Nashville Avenue (U.S. 31). The video, which police viewed with funeral home employees, showed that Daren Knighten Jr., 31, was the culprit.
The video revealed that Knighten, who is no stranger to local authorities, illegally entered two unlocked vehicles that are owned by the local funeral chapel and were parked in its parking lot.
Knighten was observed several hours later in the area of 12th Avenue and Horner Street and was taken into custody by an Atmore Police Department investigator.
The property purloined from the vehicles was recovered and returned to Petty Funeral Home officials.
Knighten remained in the Escambia County Detention Center late Monday, May 16, under $10,000 bond.
He is charged with two counts of unlawful breaking and entering a vehicle (a Class C felony) and one count of fourth-degree theft of property (a misdemeanor), indicating the stolen items had a collective value of less than $500.