Subway Wrapper, Cool Ranch Doritos Tied Man to Burglary, Cops Say

Burglarizing a home while its residents are inside can prove to be hard work that really builds up an appetite.

At least that seems to have been the case in Sarasota Monday night when a man broke into a Wisteria Street home and helped himself to a variety of electronics, including a TV, DVD player, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and Kindle Fire. The man also couldn’t seem to resist a half-eaten Subway sandwich, a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos, bottle of Gatorade and a corked bottle of Lisabella wine, according to the Sarasota Police Department.

The incident unfolded Aug. 10 when a woman and her 13-year-old son were in their home. The woman was asleep and the son was playing on the computer inside the home office. Around 9:30 p.m., a man opened the office door and told the son to “stay here,” and pulled the door shut, the boy told police later.

The teen complied and sat in the office while he heard movement in his home and talking, an email to media from the police department stated. About an hour later, after the noise died down, the son called 911.

When officers arrived on the scene, they discovered the burglar had gained access to the home through an unlocked rear screen lanai. The man then proceeded to remove four pieces of glass from a jalousie door, police said. Once able to unlock the door to the home, the man entered and proceeded to take the items, police said.

Det. Kim Laster was assigned to follow up on the case on Tuesday. Laster and Officer Jason Frank decided to canvass the area to search for the missing glass panes and any other evidence that could be found. Frank found the missing panes in a trash can across the street from the home. That home, as it turned out, was vacant.

Frank, the email said, decided to check out the vacant home and found its rear glass door, which led to the garage, unlocked. Inside the garage, Frank found a bicycle, a TV, a DVD player, an Xbox, a plastic bin with games and a Kindle Fire.

“All items matched the ones stolen from across the street,” the department’s email said.

When searching the entire home, police also found an empty Subway bag, a bottle of Gatorade, a bottle of Lisabella wine and a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos. They also happened to find a 27-year-old Sarasota man inside the home in the room where the food was found.

Braxton L. Morgan was subsequently taken into custody. He now faces burglary of an occupied dwelling and trespassing an unoccupied dwelling charges.

Morgan was booked into the Sarasota County Jail and was being held Friday in lieu of $500,120 bond. Morgan is no stranger to the Sarasota jail. He’s been arrested on six other occasions on charges ranging from drug possession to trespassing, jail records indicate.

Booking photo courtesy of the Sarasota Police Department