Homer Alaska - Local Stories -

"I'm very happy to have him in custody," Homer Police Chief Mark Robl said last week.

Veldstra's arrest came a day after the latest burglaries when Preventive Dental Services and Forget Me Not Flowers, both on Grubstake Avenue, were discovered broken into the morning of Dec. 16 -- the day after a planned power outage.

In those burglaries, someone broke windows to get in. A thief also stole tools from a car and left the tools in the dental office. Cash was taken from Forget Me Not Flowers, but nothing was reported stolen at the dental clinic.

Police are investigating evidence from those burglaries, Robl said. Veldstra is a suspect in those crimes.

Police connected Veldstra to the June break-in at Sundog Consultants and Inner Nature Chiropractic on Bunnell Avenue after the Alaska Crime Detection Laboratory made a match between fingerprints found at the scene and Veldstra. Police had sent fingerprint slides to the crime lab in June and received an initial report in July, said Megan Peters, a spokesperson for the Alaska Department of Public Safety.

The lab needed more evidence from police and got that evidence in November. Although the state crime lab has a heavy case load, each analysis was done within the normal 30-day turnaround, Peters said.

The final report linking Veldstra to the Bunnell Avenue burglaries was sent to Homer Police on Dec. 10. According to court records, Veldstra has five prior misdemeanor convictions dating back to 1994, including two convictions for fourth-degree theft and shoplifting.

According to a criminal complaint, on the morning of June 2, the owner of Inner Nature Chiropractic reported someone broke in and stole $150 in cash and jewelry worth $400. The owner of Sundog Consultants reported someone broke in and stole $200 in petty cash. Police recovered fingerprints off a plastic box and a window that had been tampered with.

Veldstra is alleged to have broken into the Compass Rose building by breaking windows and prying open doors.

"That's very similar to the pattern we've seen all summer," Robl said.

On Dec. 17, police served a warrant on and searched Veldstra's apartment on Svedlund Street, a side street off Pioneer Avenue. Robl said police are examining evidence seized to see if it ties in with the Compass Rose and other burglaries.

"We're investigating a possible connection and awaiting test results from the crime lab on certain evidence items that have been submitted," Robl said.

In court last Thursday, Judge Margaret Murphy set a cash-only bail of $5,000 with third-party custody. Assistant Kenai District Attorney Kelly Lawson asked that the bail not be reduced because the state expects Veldstra will face other burglary charges.

"It's reasonable he will be linked to others," she said.

Murphy ruled Veldstra was eligible for a public defender. In court, Veldstra said he made between $300 and $400 weekly and paid $700 in child support for his four children. He is employed in the restaurant business.

Police have been investigating a series of over 25 burglaries in the Homer area since May. Many of the burglaries were on Pioneer Avenue, with some businesses broken into twice.

Four juveniles were charged in a break-in at Kachemak Bay Family Planning Clinic on Ben Walters Lane.

Robl said police do not think Veldstra is linked to that group of juveniles.

In this summer's burglaries, typically the burglar forced entry by prying open doors or breaking windows. Usually cash was taken, with valuable items like computers not stolen. Some of the burglaries involved two people, police suspect. Police suspect Veldstra worked alone, Robl said.

A third group, possibly of juveniles, may be involved with some of the burglaries.

Second-degree burglary is a class C felony. If convicted, Veldstra could be fined up to $50,000 on each count and sentenced to up to five years in jail. Veldstra remains at Wildwood Pretrial Facility in Kenai. A preliminary hearing for him is scheduled at 3:30 p.m. Dec. 29 at Homer District Court.

Michael Armstrong can be reached at michaelarmstrong.@homernews.com.