A Golden Gate Estates man is facing more than 20 felony charges after deputies say they linked him to nine Collier County burglaries that happened between early June and late August.Franklin Hidalgo, 34, 707 Meyer Drive, is charged with multiple counts of burglary, grand theft, grand theft of a firearm and dealing in stolen property. He also is charged with one count of defrauding a pawn broker.
Investigators say Hidalgo targeted houses where it appeared that nobody was home. He would knock on the front door, then find an open window or door and enter if no one answered. Once inside he took primarily electronics, jewelry and guns.
Deputies say they connected Hidalgo to one of the burglaries Aug. 18 when a guitar he pawned was determined to be a possible match for one stolen a month earlier from a home in Golden Gate. Soon after that, Kevin Sweeney of SCUBAdventures, 971 Creech Road, called deputies and reported that Hidalgo had come to the shop trying to sell dive equipment that Sweeney recognized as belonging to one of his customers.
Investigators executed a search warrant on Hidalgo’s home this week and recovered an estimated $40,000 worth of merchandise they believe to be stolen. About $20,000 of that merchandise has been tied to the nine break-ins in which he is charged. Investigators are working to match the remaining items with property that has been reported stolen recently.
