A Coralville man was charged Sept. 20 in conjunction with a burglary at a local Kentucky Fried Chicken earlier this year.

According to a series of Iowa City police complaints, Luis Diaz, 18, allegedly burglarized Kentucky Fried Chicken, 130 Highway 1 W., with another subject in the early morning hours of May 7.  He and the other subject allegedly broke the glass front door to gain entry to the store. They then kicked in the office door in order to steal the store’s combination safe, according to the complaints.

The complaints said Diaz was easily identified in the store’s surveillance footage of the incident. He allegedly admitted to the burglary in a police interview, according to the complaint. He also allegedly told police that he and the other man returned to the area of the other man’s home, 2100 S. Scott Blvd., where they broke open the safe near the railroad tracks and discarded it nearby, the complaint said.

The complaint said the safe was recovered near the tracks at the location described by Diaz.

Diaz is charged with two counts of third-degree burglary, two counts of second-degree criminal mischief, and one count of second-degree theft — all Class-D felonies. He is also charged with third-degree theft, an aggravated misdemeanor.

— by Matt Starns