Harker Heights Fugitive Arrested at Killeen Home Where Stolen Vehicles Were Parked

A Harker Heights woman was arrested after a stolen car's GPS tracker led police to a Killeen home where cars stolen from Travis County and Copperas Cove were recently found.

Ofelia Miramontez with the Killeen Police Department reports that KPD was contacted by the Travis County Sheriff's Office for help locating a stolen vehicle from their neck of the woods equipped with a GPS tracker.

The vehicle, a silver 2008 Mercedes, was tracked to the backyard of a home in the 1100 block of Nolan Avenue in Killeen. Patrol officers spotted that car, plus another parked in the driveway that had been reported stolen out of Copperas Cove.

Police secured a search warrant, then visited the home. There, they found keys to the stolen vehicles, plus two firearms that were reported stolen out of Harker Heights, and narcotics.

28-year-old Chelsea Rhiannon Smith was one of three people in the home. Police discovered that she had five outstanding warrants for burglary of a vehicle and one for debit/credit card abuse. The warrants were out of Belton, Nolanville, and Harker Heights.

Smith was arrested and transported to the Bell County Jail. Records indicate she was booked at 9:34 PM Saturday, December 12. She remained in the Bell County Jail Monday evening with bonds totaling $75,000.

A woman identified as Brooke Cunniff was also in the home with her infant son. Miramontez did not say if Cunniff faces any charges.

Car burglaries have been up in recent months, and police say many cases of cars being broken into or stolen involve people having left doors unlocked and/or keys in the vehicles.

Personally, I followed Belton PD's advice and started following the 9PM Routine. I have an alarm on my phone set for 9PM, at which time I walk around my home and make sure my car is secured, that nothing valuable has been left in it, and that all my doors, windows, and gates are secure.

The 9 PM Routine doesn't take long, gives me a moment to enjoy the night air with my dog, and is probably a big pain in the a-- to any potential thieves looking to score. That's always a good thing.