Public Safety
Music store employees help retrieve Cannonball saxophone taken twice in store burglaries
By Peter Hermann
June 11 at 6:53 PM
The passenger on the Silver Line Metro train first noticed the leather instrument case with a cannonball logo. Then he saw that the man who was carrying it also had a flute.
The case held a Gerald Albright signature series Cannonball saxophone. Along with the flute, it had been stolen from the Middle C Music store in Tenleytown. The sax was first taken on Thursday. It was mysteriously returned Saturday, then taken again in yet another burglary Sunday.
On Tuesday, the passenger on the Metro, on his way to his job at Middle C Music, recognized the instruments as coming from the store on Wisconsin Avenue. He watched the man through seven stops, from Potomac Avenue to Metro Center, and saw him disappear into a clothing shop. The worker alerted authorities, and D.C. police arrested the suspect.
And now, for the second time in five days, the same prized saxophone worth $4,400 has been rescued. The employee whose sharp eye and good luck seeing his own stores stolen property on citys sprawling transit system, is, as he puts it, kind of a miracle.
The employee spoke on the condition of anonymity because he is a witness in a criminal case. But his boss and store owner, Myrna Sislen, said she is of course happy to have the horn back but also worried that if this guy gets out, he will come and do this again.
D.C. police identified the suspect as Vincent Stuart Hamond, 55. He is charged with two counts of burglary in connection with the Thursday and Sunday break-ins at the shop, both of which were captured on security video. In each case, entry was gained by bashing in the front glass door.
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Correction: This story was updated to correct the spelling of Vincent Stuart Hamonds name after police released an incorrect spelling.
Peter Hermann covers crime for The Washington Post. He previously worked for the Baltimore Sun for 22 years, covering a Baltimore suburb and then the Baltimore Police Department. Follow
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