MILPITAS, Calif – The Milpitas Police Department is reporting the arrest of a local transient, who has had several previous run-ins with department due to suspicious persons reports. However, on Friday, August 21 at about 3:12 A.M, Milpitas Police Officers responded to 1426 Dempsey Road, Stuft Pizza, on a report of an alarm activation.
According to Sergeant Huy Tran, “When officers arrived, they discovered the back door of the business had been pried open and a burglary had occurred.” Investigating officers were able to review video surveillance footage that had captured the suspect, 54-year-old Milpitas transient Craig Irvin Brayfield, prying open the door to enter the pizza business. Tran said, “An officer recognized the burglary suspect as being Craig Irvin Brayfield from prior contacts.”
Stuft Pizza on Dempsey Road
Milpitas police knew Brayfield as a local transient in Milpitas. While briefing officers about the situation it was determined that Brayfield would most likely be staying at a local transient encampment within the city limits. Officers entered the area and were able to identify and arrest Brayfield without incident. He was booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail for burglary.
Though identified as a transient, when he was arrested in June of this year, Brayfield listed his residence as a home in east Milpitas, near John Sinnott Elementary and Rancho Milpitas Middle Schools. He had been arrested then for petty theft and parole violations. But his history shows a pattern of regular arrests over the past ten years.
In May of 2005, Brayfield was charged with being under the influence of a controlled substance. In February of 2006 he was arrested for burglary, possession of stolen property, and forgery. A year later he was picked up for public intoxication, and then two years later for possession of a controlled substance. On Halloween day of 2009 he was charged with possession and being under the influence of marijuana, and doing so on public transportation.
Craig Brayfield 2012 booking photo
He was charged with burglary once again in February of 2012, which he was also arrested for in June, along with possession of marijuana. In October of 2010 he was caught stealing copper wire from a Milpitas resident’s back yard. In December of 2013 he was arrested for petty theft with a prior. In July of 2014 he was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and violating probation. In all those bookings he reported the same Platt Avenue residence in east Milpitas.
As concern for burglaries are increasing in Milpitas, the top brass are asking that you always call the Milpitas Police Department to report a crime in progress, or any suspicious vehicles and people in your neighborhood. Such activity could be pedestrians, bicyclists or vehicle occupants behaving unusually. If you see suspicious strangers in your neighborhood, call the Police immediately. Do not try to confront anyone, but rather try to observe the suspect and get a description, their vehicle and the direction of travel if they leave.
