Gilroy – A Morgan Hill man pilfered and resold more than $5,000
of antique blacksmithing tools from his landlord’s home and
business, using the auction Web site eBay.
Gilroy – A Morgan Hill man pilfered and resold more than $5,000 of antique blacksmithing tools from his landlord’s home and business, using the auction Web site eBay.
Michael James Thompson, 38, was arrested Saturday, Jan. 6 after Sheriff’s deputies searched his home and found stolen property. Bail was set at $50,000. Thompson was renting the home from a former Morgan Hill couple, now relocated to Pacific Grove, who asked him to keep an eye on their neighboring home and blacksmith shop, located near the intersection of Chapparral and Watsonville roads in Morgan Hill, after the home was broken into a year and a half ago.
But Thompson wasn’t a reliable caretaker: as early as June 2006, he stole blacksmithing supplies from the couple’s home and business, police said. Just after New Year’s Day, a friend of the couple tipped them off that rare horseshoeing supplies from England, among their distinctive possessions, were up for sale on eBay.
“It’s antique tools and equipment,” said Deputy Gabriel Sandoval, “stuff you wouldn’t find at your local hardware store.”
When questioned by Sheriff’s deputies, Thompson admitted to stealing and reselling the goods. He was initially booked into San Jose’s main jail, but has since been hospitalized.
