FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga.,None — An cat burglary suspect is in jail after police said he broke into cars and homes in two Forsyth County subdivisions, authorities said.
Julian Estevan Mora-Ruiz, 22, is charged with three counts of burglary and five counts of entering an auto, according to a Forsyth County Sheriff's Office release.
Ruiz, an Alpharetta resident authorities believe has gang ties, was arrested Tuesday afternoon in connection with two break-ins, one that occurred Monday and one that occurred sometime Sunday or Monday.
The first incident happened at the 4000 block of Wicklow Court in the Glencree subdivision in South Forsyth County around 4:43 a.m., authorities said.
The resident of the home said he was awakened by his wife who said she thought she heard a door open and saw a hallway light on. The man started checking the home and found Ruiz crouched in the corner of the front bedroom of the home, authorities said. When Ruiz saw the man, he jumped up and ran, escaping out of an open bedroom window, police said. He then ran down the driveway and disappeared, authorities said.
"Deputies searched the residence and the grounds with the assistance of a K-9. Two foot prints were found just outside of the window where the victim escaped the residence," said Forsyth County Sheriff Ted Paxton.
Later that same morning, deputies responded to another burglary report in the 4000 block of South Forsyth's Dorset Lane in the Aberdeen subdivision.
The residents said that sometime between 11 p.m. on Sunday and 7 a.m. Monday, someone entered their home and two vehicles while they were asleep, authorities said. Someone had first entered the homeowner's truck and then entered the vehicle belonging to his daughter. The garage door opener was missing from his daughter's vehicle. Both vehicles were unlocked.
Investigators believe the garage door opener was used to enter the home, where the burglar took $300 in cash and several credit cards from a purse and a deposit bag of one of the residents. The homeowners said they found the purse lying on the floor when they awoke. Also taken was a Dell laptop computer, authorizes said. The residents also noticed that their flat screen TV in the living room was tampered with and the speaker had been taken down from the wall above it.
Paxton warns people to secure their houses, cars and other personal belongings, especially because of Ruiz's suspected gang ties in the area.
The investigation into this case is still under way. Ruiz is being held at the Forsyth County Detention Center.