Barber tracks down burglary suspect who broke into his shop: ‘This is my home’

JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT/Gray News) - A Mississippi barbershop was broken into, and within 48 hours, the owner was able to track down the suspected bad guy himself.

The break-in happened around 3 a.m. July 26 at the Xtrondaire Company Barbershop in Jackson, WLBT reports.

Damion Portis, owner of Xtrondaire Company and Klean Jokers, says the burglar got in by going through a window.

“You can tell he was determined to get in somewhere to get what he wanted or find some valuables because he did a lot of unnecessary things just to get into the building,” Portis said.

The burglar was inside for about 10 minutes and stole roughly $4,000 worth of merchandise.

“He was able to get some valuable jewelry, some valuable designer shades,” Portis said. “He took a custom pair of shoes and a lot of other jewelry that was not valuable, other than sentimental value.”

Wanting to find the man responsible, Portis decided to go looking for him himself on the Sunday after the incident.

“I basically took the footage that I had,” he said. “I went to the Oyo Hotel and Batte Furniture and under the bypass over here by Kroger, where I know that a lot of homeless and drug addicts, etc., hang out.”

Portis’ investigation led him to find the suspect at the Oyo Hotel, which isn’t far from the shop. He then called police, who came to arrest the suspect.

“I’m very much relieved because this is my home. This is my family. I have a lot of people who work here with me,” Portis said. “I want everyone here, everyone in my presence, to feel protected.”

Not only did Portis find the suspect, he says he was also able to recover some of the items that were stolen.

Investigators identified the suspect as 23-year-old Tyler Skipper. He is being charged with business burglary.

Copyright 2024 WLBT via Gray Local Media, Inc. All rights reserved.