@aldavor is right: Save your game before you arrest anybody. That way if you're wrong you can get out without losing any job performance.
I've had all these problems. My only advice is: sometimes you have to go back to the station empty-handed. You may have to Save before you arrest everyone in the room, or the next day the crook matching all the descriptions will just show up.
Eventually you will get the crook. Lieutenant Lilith Vatore has bagged 4 baddies, and she's on her way to becoming Captain.
UPDATE: She bagged #5 last night. She called in the APB, and I figured she wouldn't find the culprit and just have to come back tomorrow, because that's what happened with #4. Well, she got there and the suspect (who fit all the clues) was right in front of her.
UPDATE TO THE UPDATE: She bagged #6 right off the bat, and then next night caught #7 (6 was a good arrest, but after the interrogation proved to be innocent).
I think it might be related to the Sims' rank. At first the glitches came thick and fast, but now that she's a Captain, it's all easy-peasy mac 'n cheesy.
Just like clues. Man, when she goes to a crime scene, there's so many clues around that she has to stop after a while or she'll spend the rest of her shift taking pictures and gathering evidence.