Intruder Caught Wearing Nothing But Towel After Showering in Couple's Home
An unusual home invasion last week alarmed homeowners in Meadow Vista, California: the suspect, clad only in a towel, was allegedly found having just showered in the couple's bathroom.
Steve Baker was fast asleep when the alleged intruder entered their home on Thursday night, according to CBS13 Sacramento. Meanwhile, Baker's wife was awake and watching TV when she heard water running in their home.
"She woke me up in a panicked way, said 'Get the gun, there's somebody upstairs,'" Baker said. "I grabbed the gun. I don't keep it loaded but I can do it pretty darn quickly, and that's what I did and to be quite honest, [I] walked out, first forgot my shorts, so my wife helped me with that."
As he headed upstairs, he met the alleged intruder just as he was exiting the bathroom. "I got to the bottom of the stairs," explained Baker, "and as I [started] to turn around the stairs he was coming down the stairs wrapped in a towel. I pointed the gun at him and said stop right there."
Baker described the scene as "about as surreal as it could get."
He recalled asking the freshly-showered intruder, "What on earth are you thinking?" The suspect reportedly told Baker, "I had to."
As Baker held the suspect at gunpoint, his wife called the authorities. Upon arrival, officers arrested 25-year-old Carrola Tiago-Freitas. The suspect has since been charged with residential burglary.
Authorities believe that Tiago-Freitas gained entry into the home by using a ceramic rabbit left behind at the crime scene. "As police were looking for evidence, they went to the dining room table and there's the bunny with a piece of glass right next to it," Baker explained.
Footage of the break-in recorded by surveillance cameras later confirmed the police theory. "He walked up the stairs, he saw it was locked, couldn't get in, walked back down and picked up this little ceramic bunny we had in the garden," Baker explained.
The homeowner told CBS13 that while the incident was scary at the time, he is able to find humor in the bizarre caper. "He's lucky because someone else could've shot him," said Baker.
Newsweek attempted to reach the Placer County Sheriff's Office for additional comment but did not receive a response in time for publication. It's not currently known why the suspect allegedly decided to shower in the Bakers' home.
