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Hueytown police say Steven Anthony Forman estimates he broke into 1,500 cars over the past six to eight months.

((Carol Robinson/crobinson@al.com))

HUEYTOWN, Alabama - A 27-year-old man told Hueytown police he broke into 1,500 cars in Jefferson and Shelby counties over the last eight months - an amount that adds up to six a day in Hueytown, Birmingham and over the mountain, authorities say.

He used the ill-gotten gains, he told police, to feed his heroin habit and fuel a lavish lifestyle.

Steven Anthony Forman was "a crime wave all by himself," Hueytown Police Chief Chuck Hagler said. "Even if you cut that in half, that's 750 in eight months."

Forman gave police the estimate of his crimes in an interview, and then thought better of it. "Man, don't write that down," he told police. "That's 1,500 felonies. That's a lot.

Hueytown police last week stopped Forman driving his vehicle without tag. The officer found out he had outstanding misdemeanor warrants.

Inside Forman's car, Hagler said, were two women's purses. Hagler said there has been a rash of break-ins in Hueytown recently where someone was actually breaking the vehicle windows and taking women's purses. "He seemed to like to break into cars at churches,'' the chief said.

Police took Forman to police headquarters for questioning. They determined that the two purses found in his car belonged to victims in their city.

Forman eventually confessed to the car break-ins in Hueytown as well as a home burglary, the chief said. He also said he carried out similar crimes in Mountain Brook, Homewood, Hoover, Vestavia Hills, Pelham, McCalla and areas off of U.S. 280.

A search of Forman's home turned up 15 more stolen purses, and five wallets, including some high-end bags such as Coach and Louis Vuitton. He was particularly interested in what happened to the Louis Vuitton bags recovered.

He kept the purses, Hagler said, to later sell to support his heroin addiction. "I love rehab,'' he said, "but I don't know if it's going to happen."

Hueytown police expect to charge Forman with 18 counts which will clear 25 break-ins in that city. Birmingham police have filed charges against him, as have Irondale police for thefts that happened during Sunday morning service at Church of the Highlands. Police from other cities are still investigating.

Forman told police he was working at a grocery store but the pay check wasn't enough to support his heroin habit. He said he was doing at least a gram of heroin a day. "I'm used to doing a shot every 20 minutes,'' he told police.

Not only did he get enough from the thefts to buy heroin, he was well fed as well. "We went out to eat four times a day,'' he said. "Nice restaurants."

Breaking into cars was quick cash, he said. Forman said gift cards are gold. He talked of a business in Vestavia Hills that buys gift cards, paying out half the card value in cash. "I went in with $1,800 in (stolen) gift cars and came out with like $850,'' Forman said.

It appears many of the victims made it easy on him. He stole four credit/debit cards from one woman who had all of her PIN numbers attached to the cards. "You hit the jackpot there, didn't you?" the detective asked him. Forman said it's not uncommon. "A lot of people do that," he said.

Many left their purses and wallets in the car during church services, he said, often in plain sight. "This is what we've been telling people not to do for 20 years,'' Hagler said. "Ninety percent of what he did was a crime of opportunity."

Forman said he focused on purses, wallets and their contents. He kept the cash, sold the purses and literally "ditched" most phones and other electronics because they're too easy to trace. He pitched them, he said, in storm drains.

Forman told police he knew he was probably saying too much. His cellmates told him so. "Everybody upstairs is like, 'You're an idiot for telling them everything.' You should make them work for it, '' Forman said in his taped statement. "I'm like, 'they're going to find out anyway.'''

Hagler said sometimes the public, and the courts, don't take property crimes as serious as violent crimes. They should, he said. "This guy's a criminal. He's caused heartache all over the county."