One night last week, my wife and son went to bed while I stayed up to watch Curb Your Enthusiasm.
About 15 minutes in, I heard some odd thumping noises, but assumed it was my son upstairs in the bathroom. A few minutes later, I heard someone trying to get into our locked French doors from our back deck! The curtains were drawn, so I couldn’t see out. I jumped up from the couch, clicked on the outdoor floodlight, and pulled the curtains aside… to find a dude on my deck on his way to checking the kitchen window.
He turned suddenly to face me peering at him through the glass of the door, and he began making a steady exit from the deck. I opened the door and took 2 steps out to chase him, when reason took over and I darted back inside to dial 911. As I spoke to the dispatcher, I ran into a side room to see if the guy left my backyard, and I noticed my shed was open (apparently he checked the shed before trying my back door).
He was gone, and the gate remained locked, so I deducted he had jumped the fence twice- once upon entering, and once on exiting. At least I got a good look at him in those few seconds.
Long story short: When the patrolman arrived and took down all info (including my description of the dude) he gave me his card and left to look around my property and back yard. I didn’t have much confidence in the dude being apprehended. But here’s where it gets good - the officer knocked on my door 5 minutes later to tell me that he had found the guy’s cell phone in my side yard!
Apparently the dude dropped it hopping my fence!
Next morning, 2 officers and a detective came by to look for more clues. They got fingerprints from a side window, as well as photos and measurements of footprints in the rain-soaked yard! They told me they know who it is and expected to make an arrest later and would let me know.
Next day, I got a call from the detective. He told me the guy was one of a ring of 3 who robbed houses in the area, but our man had eluded police and hid out in Philadelphia. Fortunately they arrested the driver of the ring, and were confident of capturing the remaining 2 suspects.
The sad part is, these were just kids - 18 year olds who lived in my town (one kid was in my son’s yearbook from last year). They had successfully robbed a house in a development next to mine the same night my house was the target. The officer told me they would all be going to prison on a slew of charges when arrested and processed.
Today I’ve been informed that a second arrest was made, though I’m not sure if it was the guy who was at my house. But both he and the driver made bail and were free for now. As a parent, I can only imagine utter disappointment with my son had he acted as they did.
Now we await the last arrest and the trials of all three.
I hope they serve their time well, and turn their lives around upon release in a few years.