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Thousands Of Dollars Worth Of Items Stolen From Days Of Looting Found In Colwyn 'Stash House,' Police Say

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Some of the items stolen during days of looting have been found. CBS3 got a look at the new-found stash.

Piles of plywood, boarded-up businesses -- like other shopping centers, the Penrose Plaza was hit hard by looters. It was clear the inventory went somewhere, and some of it turned up Tuesday morning.

"When I walked in and seen what was there, I really thought I was in Kmart, Walmart or something like that. There was stuff everywhere," Colwyn Mayor Maurice Clark Sr. said.

The stash is an eclectic assortment of beauty products, liquor, jumper cables, mismatched tires and shoes -- a stockpile, according to Colwyn police.

colwyn loot stash
Credit: CBS3

"The apartment has a lot of traffic in and out in the last few days," Interim Colwyn Police Chief Michael Hale said.

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A tip from a confidential informant led officers to a small, one-bedroom apartment on Main Street in the borough around 10 a.m. Tuesday.

"We were met by a bunch of people that were fleeing out of the property and at that point, I knew there was something going on at that location," Hale said.

What they found inside was thousands of dollars worth of stolen items, according to police.

"It appears that it was a stash house for all the looters were just stuffing things in that house for the time being before they could probably sell it on the street," Hale said.

Most items still have tags and the hope is to return the products to where they were taken from.

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To return items never expected to be seen again would be a rare achievement, and the department of just three officers has left the mayor proud.

"We got a little police department but they are good," Clark said.

Two individuals, a man and a woman who lived in the apartment, were arrested and are awaiting charges.

Colwyn police are asking that any store managers who believe their items may have been part of this collection to reach out.

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