Imperial Beach Man Arrested 19 Years Later on Burglary Warrant

A 38-year-old apartment manager has been arrested in Imperial Beach on a 19-year-old burglary warrant for breaking into the garage of an Indiana business, San Diego police announced Thursday.

William Joseph Johns was taken into custody at his apartment in the 650 block of 10th Avenue in Imperial Beach without incident at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Police Department spokesman Bill Robinson said.

Johns was wanted on a no-bail burglary warrant issued in Lake County, Ind., on Nov. 7, 1968. The warrant states that Johns and four accomplices “feloniously entered a garage and removed property that did not belong to him,” San Diego Detective Sgt. Gordon G. Redding said.

Johns told police Wednesday that he has had numerous contacts with law enforcement officers since 1968 and said he did not know a warrant had been issued for his arrest, Redding said.

Redding said that the San Diego Special Investigations Fugitive Unit, working with the FBI, received information on Monday that Johns was in the San Diego area.

Traced to His Apartment

After further investigation by San Diego Police Officers Tom Wagner and Bill Graham of the special investigations fugitive unit, Johns was traced to his Imperial Beach apartment, where he worked full time as the apartment manager, Robinson said.

In 1968, Johns was convicted of the burglary charge and a federal charge of driving stolen vehicles across state lines, Redding said.

Johns served four years (1968-72) in federal prison for the stolen vehicles conviction, and upon completion of his federal sentence was supposed to be returned to the Indiana state prison system to serve time for the burglary conviction. However, because of a mix-up, he was released by federal authorities, Redding said.

Although Johns had numerous encounters with authorities in Michigan and Chicago, the agencies had no way of knowing there was a warrant out for his arrest because at the time Lake County, a small town, had no computer system to link them with other law enforcement agencies, Redding said.

Unusual in Western U.S.

Redding said that Indiana officials were happy that Johns was arrested and were sending officers to return him to Indiana within the next few days, provided that Johns waives his rights for extradition.

“This type of (extradition) is very unusual in the western United States, but this seems to be the rule in the Midwest. Perhaps this is the way to do business. The man owes the time, so perhaps he should serve it,” Redding said.

Johns also has a warrant for his arrest from April, 1977, in Calumet City, Ill., on charges of battery on a police officer, Redding said.

Johns is expected to serve between two and five years in the Indiana state prison on the burglary charge, Redding said.

Robinson said that police know of nothing Johns has done wrong in the San Diego area.