Trio of break-ins lead to charges for Clarington man

Two back-to-back break-ins at Clarington businesses have led to charges for a local man.

An alarm went off at a business near King Street East and Liberty Street South in Bowmanville shortly after 1 p.m. on Dec. 3, Durham Police said. When officers arrived, they found the business had been broken into but no suspects were around.

About 45 minutes later, police learned of another break-in at a second business less than a kilometre away. This time when officers arrived they found a suspect inside the business and arrested him.

A sweep of the area later found a third business had also been burglarized. The area is home to multiple commercial plazas and several homes. Police did not share which businesses were broken into or what was stolen.

Jeremy Richardson, 21 of Clarington, is charged with:

• three counts of break-and-enter of a non-dwelling with intent to commit an offence
• two counts of possession of property obtained by crime under $5,000
• possession of break-in instruments and
• three counts of failure to comply with a release order

Richardson has been held in custody until a bail hearing. Police confirmed he had already been released after facing similar charges.

Anyone with information can call police at 1-888-579-1520 ext. or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).