Man Charged In Biggby Donation Jar Theft

A 21-year-old man was charged after police said he stole a donation jar containing hundreds of dollars for a Macomb County fallen soldiers' monument at the Monday evening.

Bryan Burrows was arraigned on charges of larceny from a building and possesion of narcotics in 41-A District Court Tuesday. A judge set a $15,000 bond for each charge and a probable cause hearing for Feb. 21.

Employees said Burrows had been sitting at the store on Van Dyke, just north of 23 Mile for about an hour before he walked up to the register around 9:15 p.m. as employees worked to close up and grabbed the donation jar off the counter. Burrows stormed out of the coffee shop and ran into his SUV parked outside, police said.

Witnesses and employees were able to provide police with a partial license plate number. Detective Lt. Stan Muszynski said police tracked down the suspected vehicle near 23 Mile and Van Dyke roads within an hour of the robbery, and arrested Burrows, who had been contacted by his family and urged to to turn himself in.

“I think it was good cooperation by the people that work at the store, as well as good police work that made the quick arrest happen,” said Muszynski.

Biggby employees told police there was between $300 and $400 in the donation jar. Local franchise owner Dave Daynko brought out a two-foot tall wooden donation box with a steel lock Tuesday.

for the Hearts of America Memorial at the Macomb County building in Mount Clemens to honor the county’s fallen soldiers since the beginning of February.

"He stole from dead veterans -- this wasn’t my money or the VFWs -- it was funds donated for a memorial on their behalf," said Danyko.

The stolen money has not been recovered.