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Employee charged in theft of high-end guitars
By ERIC HARTLEY, Staff Writer
The custom guitars made at Paul Reed Smith's shop on Kent Island are used by some of the most famous musicians in the world, including Carlos Santana, Dave Matthews and Jimmy Buffett.
But over the past few years, at least a dozen of the axes didn't end up in the hands of their intended recipients. Instead, an employee of PRS, as the guitar maker is known, stole them from the factory and gave them to a friend, Maryland State Police say.
A third man who didn't know the guitars were stolen then sold them on eBay, police say.
Jeffrey Harry Lanahan of Annapolis, a longtime PRS employee who was supposed to deliver guitars to artists, and his friend, Michael Jay Kelly of Arnold, are charged with felony theft and conspiracy.
Their trials are set for February. Mr. Lanahan and his attorney couldn't be reached, but Jeffrey Marcalus, the attorney for Mr. Kelly, said his client is innocent.
"He's not guilty of any wrongdoing in this case," Mr. Marcalus said, declining to answer specific questions.
Michael Dunty, an Anne Arundel County prosecutor who's handling the case, said the stolen guitars were worth $2,000 to $10,000 apiece. He said he'll seek restitution of about $40,000 if the men are convicted.
Mr. Smith, a Bowie native who made his first guitar as part of a college music class in 1975 - he got an A, he notes on his Web site - opened a small shop in Annapolis 20 years ago.
But by the 1990s the business had grown and moved across the Bay Bridge to a state-of-the-art factory. PRS clients range from hard-rockers like Axl Rose, Trent Reznor and Dave Navarro to more gentle acts like the Indigo Girls and the Eagles.
"It's the only electric guitar I've ever really played and liked," said Jimi Davies, singer and guitarist for the local bands Jimmie's Chicken Shack and the JarFlys. "It's easy and it takes a good beating and it always sounds good."
Mr. Lanahan, 43, had worked at PRS for eight to 10 years and was one of the few people who had access to "artist guitars," said Cpl. M. McGuire, the lead investigator on the case, who declined to give his first name.
PRS reported the missing guitars to police on May 26. Cpl. McGuire said police quickly tracked down Michael Green, the man who was selling the guitars on eBay for Mr. Kelly, and sent him a message online.
"He just directed us where to go from there," Cpl. McGuire said.
PRS officials couldn't be reached for comment last week.
Mr. Green, who advertised on eBay that he specializes in selling guitars, told police he had met Mr. Kelly several years ago and had sold about 20 guitars for him. Mr. Kelly would call or e-mail and Mr. Green, who lives in both Texas and Maryland, would pick up the guitars at Mr. Kelly's house, police said.
Mr. Green told police he stopped selling the guitars after Mr. Kelly, now 42, gave him 10 at one time last year and Mr. Green suspected that they were stolen.
Mr. Green has not been charged and is not suspected of doing anything wrong, Cpl. McGuire said.
When police searched Mr. Kelly's home at 62 Joyce Lane in Arnold on May 27, they found four guitars with cases, as well as an empty case and a guitar strap and strings, according to charging documents.
One guitar was also found at Mr. Lanahan's home at 1330 Washington Drive in Annapolis, Cpl. McGuire said. All the guitars were in mint condition.
"One at the Arnold address was currently listed on eBay when we hit the door," Cpl. McGuire said.
The artists whose guitars were stolen aren't quite as high-profile as Mr. Santana or Mr. Reznor, but included guitarists for country superstar Faith Hill, and the rock bands Incubus and Nickelback.
PRS guitars are well-known targets for theft because they're so prized. Police said the "artist guitars" at the factory are kept in a locked area. And security has gotten tighter since the thefts, according to a former employee who didn't want to be named.
Mr. Lanahan resigned in September 2004, police said.
Many PRS employees, who often start with tasks like sanding, are aspiring musicians. Mr. Davies, who goes by the name Jimi HaHa, said he worked at PRS briefly in the late 1980s when it was in Annapolis. At the time, he said, employees who stayed there six months got a custom guitar.
"I tried three different times to work there for six months and never made it," he said, explaining that holding a steady job wasn't his priority at 18 or 19. "Everybody knew I was kind of there to get a guitar."
The third time, he finally got what he wanted, though he still didn't make it to six months.
"So the last time they had a fire sale, they called it, they sold all their seconds for like $250, and I got one and quit," Mr. Davies recalled.
Asked whether he still had the guitar, he laughed and said, "Actually, someone stole that from me years ago."
Employee charged in theft of high-end guitars
By ERIC HARTLEY, Staff Writer
The custom guitars made at Paul Reed Smith's shop on Kent Island are used by some of the most famous musicians in the world, including Carlos Santana, Dave Matthews and Jimmy Buffett.
But over the past few years, at least a dozen of the axes didn't end up in the hands of their intended recipients. Instead, an employee of PRS, as the guitar maker is known, stole them from the factory and gave them to a friend, Maryland State Police say.
A third man who didn't know the guitars were stolen then sold them on eBay, police say.
Jeffrey Harry Lanahan of Annapolis, a longtime PRS employee who was supposed to deliver guitars to artists, and his friend, Michael Jay Kelly of Arnold, are charged with felony theft and conspiracy.
Their trials are set for February. Mr. Lanahan and his attorney couldn't be reached, but Jeffrey Marcalus, the attorney for Mr. Kelly, said his client is innocent.
"He's not guilty of any wrongdoing in this case," Mr. Marcalus said, declining to answer specific questions.
Michael Dunty, an Anne Arundel County prosecutor who's handling the case, said the stolen guitars were worth $2,000 to $10,000 apiece. He said he'll seek restitution of about $40,000 if the men are convicted.
Mr. Smith, a Bowie native who made his first guitar as part of a college music class in 1975 - he got an A, he notes on his Web site - opened a small shop in Annapolis 20 years ago.
But by the 1990s the business had grown and moved across the Bay Bridge to a state-of-the-art factory. PRS clients range from hard-rockers like Axl Rose, Trent Reznor and Dave Navarro to more gentle acts like the Indigo Girls and the Eagles.
"It's the only electric guitar I've ever really played and liked," said Jimi Davies, singer and guitarist for the local bands Jimmie's Chicken Shack and the JarFlys. "It's easy and it takes a good beating and it always sounds good."
Mr. Lanahan, 43, had worked at PRS for eight to 10 years and was one of the few people who had access to "artist guitars," said Cpl. M. McGuire, the lead investigator on the case, who declined to give his first name.
PRS reported the missing guitars to police on May 26. Cpl. McGuire said police quickly tracked down Michael Green, the man who was selling the guitars on eBay for Mr. Kelly, and sent him a message online.
"He just directed us where to go from there," Cpl. McGuire said.
PRS officials couldn't be reached for comment last week.
Mr. Green, who advertised on eBay that he specializes in selling guitars, told police he had met Mr. Kelly several years ago and had sold about 20 guitars for him. Mr. Kelly would call or e-mail and Mr. Green, who lives in both Texas and Maryland, would pick up the guitars at Mr. Kelly's house, police said.
Mr. Green told police he stopped selling the guitars after Mr. Kelly, now 42, gave him 10 at one time last year and Mr. Green suspected that they were stolen.
Mr. Green has not been charged and is not suspected of doing anything wrong, Cpl. McGuire said.
When police searched Mr. Kelly's home at 62 Joyce Lane in Arnold on May 27, they found four guitars with cases, as well as an empty case and a guitar strap and strings, according to charging documents.
One guitar was also found at Mr. Lanahan's home at 1330 Washington Drive in Annapolis, Cpl. McGuire said. All the guitars were in mint condition.
"One at the Arnold address was currently listed on eBay when we hit the door," Cpl. McGuire said.
The artists whose guitars were stolen aren't quite as high-profile as Mr. Santana or Mr. Reznor, but included guitarists for country superstar Faith Hill, and the rock bands Incubus and Nickelback.
PRS guitars are well-known targets for theft because they're so prized. Police said the "artist guitars" at the factory are kept in a locked area. And security has gotten tighter since the thefts, according to a former employee who didn't want to be named.
Mr. Lanahan resigned in September 2004, police said.
Many PRS employees, who often start with tasks like sanding, are aspiring musicians. Mr. Davies, who goes by the name Jimi HaHa, said he worked at PRS briefly in the late 1980s when it was in Annapolis. At the time, he said, employees who stayed there six months got a custom guitar.
"I tried three different times to work there for six months and never made it," he said, explaining that holding a steady job wasn't his priority at 18 or 19. "Everybody knew I was kind of there to get a guitar."
The third time, he finally got what he wanted, though he still didn't make it to six months.
"So the last time they had a fire sale, they called it, they sold all their seconds for like $250, and I got one and quit," Mr. Davies recalled.
Asked whether he still had the guitar, he laughed and said, "Actually, someone stole that from me years ago."
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