This alleged attempted thief got locked in, and now finds himself locked up. In an unusual twist to a New Jersey burglary case, the accused criminal found himself unable to get out of the vehicle he was trying to steal from.
police in Hamilton Township said that after having dinner Thursday evening, the owner of a pickup parked outside a Longhorn Steakhouse discovered a suspected car burglar inside the vehicle.
“You can get in, but you can’t get out unless somebody let you out from the outside. I had to wind the windows down to get out,” the owner of the truck told police, as shown in body cam video obtained by CBS News.
According to Greg Van Gilder, of the Hamilton Township Police Department, the truck had previously had mechanical issues with the doors, and the owner was the only one who knew how to properly open them.
those issues certainly came as a surprise to the suspect, 19-year-old Jeison Henriquez Sanchez, of Pleasantville.
“He thought it was his parents vehicle, which turned out to be untrue, and he was taken into custody without any incident,” said Van Gilder to NBC New York.
Sanchez can be heard on bodycam footage telling the officer it was all a “big misunderstanding” as he was put into handcuffs. The officer responded that he could “explain that to a judge.You’re under arrest now.”
Sanchez was taken into custody and found to have existing warrants out for his arrest on unrelated charges. While police generally advise people not to leave valuable items in their cars, this case was unique.
“It was, was unusual. typically, with car burglaries, people are in and out,” Van Gilder said. “the message we always put out is: Do not leave any valuables in your vehicle. And always lock your vehicles.”
The inquiry was solved immediately, with no need for a chase.