OREM — Excuse me, sir. Is this your weed?

A smart criminal would answer, "No."

Then again, a smart criminal wouldn't have called police to report that his marijuana had been stolen.

"Even the dumb criminals are generally smarter than this," said Orem Police Lt. Doug Edwards.

Police received a call Monday night from an 18-year-old Orem man reporting that his home had been broken into and that the quarter-pound of marijuana he had been trying to sell was missing.

The burglar had broken a window and apparently cut himself while crawling into the home, Edwards said. The trail of blood indicated that the thief's efforts were concentrated on the 18-year-old's bedroom, where the drugs had been kept.

The Orem man told police that earlier Monday a 23-year-old Provo man had called him about purchasing the marijuana. The deal didn't take place, however, because the 18-year-old was on his way to work, police said.

"(He) thought that (the Provo man) might be a good suspect in the case," Edwards said.

Officers agreed and tracked the Provo man to his mother's home, where they also found 6 ounces of marijuana and a pair of blood-soaked pants.

The man, who had a large cut on his arm, was arrested and booked in the Utah County Jail on Monday night for investigation of burglary, theft and possession of marijuana in a drug-free zone with the intent to distribute.

With the stolen property recovered, officers called the 18-year-old and requested that he come to the Orem Public Safety Building to identify the bag of marijuana.

"He actually came and identified it as his," Edwards said.

The 18-year-old was taken into custody and booked in the Utah County Jail just after midnight for possession of marijuana in a drug-free zone with intent to distribute.

"I have no clue as to why (the 18-year-old) would report this crime to the police," Edwards said, "but thank goodness that he did."

---

E-mail: jpage@desnews.com