Alleged 'shoe burglar' arrested; police seize thousands of shoes

The man who police say has spent 20 years stealing shoes from Newark-area residences was arrested Friday, after officers raided his house and confiscated three truckloads of shoes and other stolen goods.

Newark police say Walter J. Rubincan, 46, is responsible for the well-publicized series of thefts of shoes and photographs of men from university students' houses last month, as well as dozens of other burglaries.

Rubincan has been charged with 77 counts of theft, 25 counts of second-degree burglary and 15 counts of criminal mischief in 25 separate break-ins, some as recent as Jan. 12 and as early as December 2005.

However, investigators believe he has committed similar crimes as far back as 20 years ago, said Newark police spokesman Lt. Brian Henry.

Police found more than 150 boxes of shoes and photographs in Rubincan's house in the 100 block of W. Cobblefield Court, located in a neighborhood off of W. Chestnut Hill Road, about a mile south of Delaware Stadium.

"A count has not yet been conducted, but it is a safe estimate that the boxes contain several thousand shoes," Henry said.

Officers also seized several composite photographs from a fraternity, as well as eight surfboards, eight guitars, a snowboard and a mandolin, all of which police say are stolen.

Reports of the shoe burglaries surfaced a month ago, when five houses, most of which are occupied by university students, were burglarized between Christmas and New Year's Day.

In those incidents, Rubincan allegedly took men's shoes and photographs of men, leaving behind electronics and other valuables. It's not immediately clear when the surfboards and musical instruments were stolen.

After media reports about the initial shoe burglaries, more victims came forward. In all, Henry said, 200 shoes were reported missing.

One of the major incidents reported was a November break-in at the Kappa Sigma fraternity house on Academy Street, in which the burglar took dozens of pairs of shoes, as well as composite photos and several pairs of men's boxer shorts. Police have not yet said whether the composite photographs found in Rubincan's house are the ones taken from the Kappa Sigma house.

Henry said investigators were able to connect Rubincan to the burglaries through a description of his vehicle. During one of the burglaries last month, a witness saw a yellow Mitsubishi Eclipse leaving one of the crime scenes.

On Jan. 24, a citizen tipped police off about a cache of shoes dumped in a creek in Elkton, Md. Officers seized more than 250 shoes, which they now say were part of Rubincan's stash.

Rubincan is being held on $138,000 bond.

Rubincan has been charged in the following burglaries: