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Swansea, Mass.

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Pair charged in breaks into vehicles

01:00 AM EDT on Thursday, July 24, 2008

SWANSEA –– Two men were arrested and charged with three counts of breaking into a motor vehicle with intent to commit a felony and three counts of larceny early yesterday.

Gregory S. Ortega, 18, of 234 Rathbun St., and Andrew Martineau, 18, of 5 John St., both of Woonsocket, were stopped for a traffic violation yesterday at 3 a.m. on Route 6, according to the police. When stopped, Ortega and Martineau, along with three juvenile passengers from the back seat, told Sgt. Richard Roussel they were lost in attempts to find Fall River.

A GPS unit appeared to be hastily placed on the windshield, but wasn’t visible to the driver, according to a news release.

When Roussel returned to his cruiser to write them a citation, the front-seat passenger appeared to bend over and possibly conceal or remove an item from view. Roussel further searched the vehicle and discovered a wallet belonging to residents of Bettencourt Lane and Evergreen Drive, both of Swansea. The owners of the wallets were contacted and it was confirmed that their unlocked vehicles had been entered. It was then discovered that a third vehicle had been broken into, and a GPS unit and satellite radio receiver had been stolen. The items were found in the searched vehicle.

Officers then removed the passengers from the back seat and discovered more stolen items.

The juveniles, ages 15 and 16, will be summoned to juvenile court on similar charges as will Ortega and Martineau, according to the release. Last week, 22 cars were broken into in Swansea. All the cars were unlocked, and the vehicles were entered without force entry.