Iowa City man accused of theft, burglary, witness tampering

An Iowa City man has been arrested on suspicion of second-degree theft, third-degree burglary and tampering with a witness after authorities say he took property from the residence of a woman's deceased mother and then allegedly threatened to hurt her if she gave details to police.

Reports indicate that Michael J. Shrock, 33, of 4487 490th St, is accused of burglarizing a residence at 2254 S. Riverside Drive No. 50 at around 2 a.m. July 16.

Authorities say Shrock stole a Macintosh computer, vacuum cleaner, jewelry, tools and other miscellaneous items valued at more than $1,200.

A witness confirmed that Shrock had allegedly broken into the residence. Some of the property was later located at an apartment on Finkbine Lane, where authorities were told that Shrock had dropped the property off, left the apartment and not returned, police said.

Authorities were told Tuesday by a woman living at the apartment that Shrock had allegedly pulled her hair and told her that "she knew exactly what to say" if police came to ask questions.

According to police, the woman said that she took the perceived threats seriously and had given false information to authorities to protect Shrock because she was scared that he would physically harm her once he was released from jail.

Shrock was being held at the Johnson County Jail Wednesday morning on a $20,000 cash bond.

Third-degree burglary and second-degree theft are class D felonies. Tampering with a witness is an aggravated misdemeanor.