Police Arrest Serial Prowler

BERKELEY, CA — Police said again Wednesday that private surveillance cameras are great tools for identifying suspects and solving crimes following an arrest in Berkeley of a prowling suspect.

The arrest was made after a female resident allegedly saw someone prowling around her home in the 1300 block of Delaware Street for the third time this month.

Police said March 3 the resident allegedly saw a "Peeping Tom" looking into one of her home's windows early in the morning. The resident screamed when she saw the person and he went away.

After the incident, the resident installed surveillance cameras in her yard.

The same resident alleged she saw someone prowling outside her home on March 12. Police said the prowling at about 6:30 a.m. was caught by the resident's surveillance cameras.

According to police, the suspect was looking through the resident's bedroom window. Police said before the suspect left the yard, he saw one of the cameras and moved it before he went away.

Officers watched some surveillance footage during a patrol briefing Wednesday morning and about a half hour later the same resident called police and alleged that someone was in her yard.

A slew of officers went to the home and saw a suspect emerging from a yard on Acton Street near the victim's home.

The suspect was detained without any trouble and officers allegedly recognized the person from the video they watched at the patrol briefing.

Police said they arrested 55-year-old Oakland man Pedro Jacobo.

— Bay City News; Image via BPD