Would-Be Burglar Picks Wrong Home To Break Into
DENVER (CBS4) - A man is in custody after trying to break into several homes in Green Valley Ranch, but he picked the wrong house to start.
Roberto Garcia, 28, faces charges of burglary, property damage and drug possession.
According to police, early Sunday morning a man was spotted jumping over fences and running through yards in A Green Valley Ranch neighborhood.
"He jumped over my fence and then all you heard was a bunch of glass and wood and everything breaking," neighbor Denise Jones said.
Eventually the suspect picked a home to try and break into. The family watched as he picked up a brick and started banging on their front window until it shattered. What the suspect didn't know was an off-duty Denver sheriff's deputy lived at the home.
"That Denver sheriff's deputy gets his side arm and goes out to try and confront this male," Steve Warneke with the Denver Police Department said.
From there the suspect busted through a neighbor's fence and then broke a window at another home and made his way inside.
"Right next door, and I thought it was right out here because it sounded like they were beating on my door," Jones said.
Inside her neighbor's home were three teenage boys. The deputy, not far behind, was able to hold the suspect at gunpoint until police arrived.
"It's a crazy situation, but what a great neighbor," Warneke said. "You can't say enough about this Denver sheriff's deputy and what he did. For sure he saved the day and probably those kids."
"He protected the whole neighborhood," Jones said. "I'm glad we have him."
Police said Garcia suffered some serious injuries from breaking through the window and was taken to the hospital before being booked into jail.
Initially Garcia refused to give police a name when he was arrested.
The deputy's name hasn't been released.
