Alleged serial burglar meets match in Saugus

SAUGUS – Saugus Police say they found a Salem, N.H. man hiding in the attic of an Adams Avenue home on Tuesday after the man allegedly broke into the house.Daniel Heath, 21, of 25 Blake Road, Salem, N.H., was arrested on Tuesday morning and charged with two counts each of breaking and entering in the daytime and malicious destruction of property and one count of larceny over $250.Heath was arraigned in Lynn District Court Wednesday and court officials said he was being held on $1,500 bail.According to police reports, Heath was found hiding in an attic at 125 Adams Ave., in Saugus, after the homeowner returned from the gym Tuesday morning to find his basement window open and basement door forced open.After the resident heard noises coming from upstairs, he called police, who responded and cleared the first and second floors of the house. An officer then saw a person looking out the top floor window located in the attic, according to court documents.”We located the suspect hiding in the attic,” said Police Lt. Ronald Giorgetti. “After he determined there was no avenue of escape? he surrendered without incident.”Police recovered a small pile of gold chains, assorted gold jewelry and a diamond ring from the attic where Heath was allegedly hiding.Court documents say Heath confessed to an attempted break-in on Beech Street in Saugus earlier in the day, along with several other break-ins in the surrounding area.”We were able to tie him into an earlier break over at 10 Beech St. where he attempted to enter the residence,” said Giorgetti. “We believe based on our investigation he was involved in several other breaks in the surrounding communities.”Police responded to a call at around 4:45 p.m. for an attempted break-in on Beech Street. According to police reports, the homeowner stated that some time around 9 a.m., his daughter was upstairs when she “heard someone downstairs in the kitchen calling their cat,” and noticed whoever was there left through the window.Court documents show Heath confessed to this break-in, and said he entered halfway through the kitchen window, but it “didn’t feel right” and the cat “spooked” him and he ran off.After Saugus police questioned Heath, Melrose and Wakefield police were then contacted, who questioned Heath about previous break-ins in those towns. According to court records, Heath confessed to a pair of break-ins in Melrose and two in Wakefield.Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected]. You can follow him on Twitter at @MattTempesta.