SAN LEANDRO — A man known as the “teddy bear bandit” for burglarizing a flower shop in October and making off with flowers and stuffed animals has been arrested, police said Wednesday.
Authorities said Andre Benny Murphy, 46, of Oakland, who has 10 felony convictions, was taken into custody Friday at an Oakland coffee shop. He has been charged with second-degree commercial burglary and is being held in lieu of $185,000 bail, according to court and jail records.
Murphy was dubbed the “teddy bear bandit” by police after the East Bay Flower Shop, 1200 East 14th Street was burglarized about 2 a.m. Oct. 22.
Police said the thief used a BB style handgun to shoot out the front glass windows to the business, entered the store and stole numerous flowers and stuffed animals, including teddy bears. The entire incident was captured on the store’s video surveillance system, police said.
In a news release, San Leandro police Lt. Isaac Benabou said detectives began investigating and received a lead from another police agency that led them to Murphy. According to court records, the BB gun believed used in the burglary was found in the trunk of his car when he was arrested
During the investigation, some of the stuffed teddy bears were found at a female’s home in Alameda, police said. A warrant accusing him of burglary was issued for Murphy’s arrest.
Several other law enforcement agencies are also investigating Murphy for similar style burglaries.
“The case is an example of how law enforcement agencies network together, sharing information to solve cases,” Benabou said. “We know that the suspect had given the stolen flowers and stuffed animals to a female friend. Now, the teddy bear bandit will have to find other ways to show his affection.”
According to court records, Murphy’s felony convictions were between 1991 and 2016 and include carjacking, burglary, forgery, vehicle theft, receiving stolen property and different drug charges. He went to prison for the majority of them, including a 1995 carjacking and most recently a December 2016 burglary conviction.