Stolen watch listed on eBay seals charges

Any good eBayer knows describing an online auction item in tremendous detail can pay off -- unless, of course, that item belongs to someone else.

This was apparently news to a 21-year-old Geneva man whose attempt to sell an antique watch on the popular Internet auction site landed him in jail recently on charges of stealing from his customers at a UPS Store in St. Charles, police said.

Nicholas M. Anderson, of 2135 Pepper Drive Unit 3, is accused of tearing into a pair of outgoing packages while his boss was away and swiping a circa-1824 pocket watch and a 12-gauge shotgun. Police say he then had a friend list the watch on eBay for $700 -- even including a unique serial number that tied the watch directly to its rightful owner, who happened upon the auction himself.

Now, Anderson faces two counts of felony theft over $300. He's out of a job too.

"It's just shocking," said Mike Caston, who's owned the UPS Store at 2400 E. Main St. about eight months. "I'm kind of angry it had to happen to me. That kind of behavior won't be tolerated. I let him go immediately."

According to an arrest report dated March 12 and made public Friday, Anderson was "desperate for money" to pay off $30,000 in legal debt from a drunken driving arrest in Carol Stream and a drug possession charge in Downers Grove.

Authorities were first alerted of the situation after Caston surveyed store security footage from several days when he was off. A video from Feb. 29 showed Anderson twice stepping off camera with packages, he said. About the same time, Caston said he started receiving customer calls about missing packages, and the watch owner stumbled across the eBay listing.

Needing to link Anderson to the auction, authorities said they contacted the eBay Fraud Investigation Team, whose investigators reported the auction was registered to a 36-year-old DeKalb man who also turned out to be a reference on Anderson's UPS job application. According to police, officers also used Google.com to find the friend, who admitted listing the watch for Anderson, although he said he didn't know it was stolen.

At that point, officers had enough evidence to detain Anderson. So they arranged a meeting with him at his home, posing as interested buyers looking to inspect the pricey antique watch.

When they arrived and identified themselves as police investigators, Anderson's hands reportedly started shaking, and he told them, "Guys, this is disrespectful."

Police say subsequent interviews with Anderson, his mother, his friend and his ex-girlfriend revealed he stole contents of two packages: a 12-gauge shotgun and the watch. An arrest report said Anderson resealed the packages and left them in an area for outgoing deliveries.

While the watch quickly made its way onto eBay, Anderson threw the firearm in a Dumpster behind the store and covered it with packing materials and boxes after realizing it was dismantled and possibly missing parts, police said. He reportedly saw the trash bin emptied March 3.

"We have not been able to track down the gun yet," St. Charles police Cmdr. Dave Kintz said Friday.

Anderson is free on $20,000 bond. His cell phone was not accepting calls Friday afternoon. Caston said Anderson had worked for UPS about three years and never before caused him problems. The watch since has been returned to its owner.

The outcome might not have been possible without Web-assisted investigating, which is becoming increasingly common. Officers often turn to MySpace, eBay and other Internet sites for leads, Kintz said. He added that the serial number in the auction listing sealed the charges against Anderson, whose next court date is April 17.

"That makes it easy," he said. "Otherwise, you look at it and say, 'Is it similar or exact?' When you put the serial number on there, we know that's it."