Attempted Burglar Nabbed in Swamp by Police Dog

The dog tracked down a man suspected of trying to break in to a condominium on Monday night.

Police K9 Falco tracked Thomas Galligan, 43, of 36 Ash St. in North Attleboro from the River Run condos, on Abington Road behind , to a nearby swamp where he was arrested.

Danvers Police Sgt. Robert Bettencourt said the brother of a condo resident stepped outside to smoke a cigarette at about 8:54 p.m. when he encountered Galligan allegedly trying to get into his brother’s condo by trying to pry open a rear glass sliding door. He shortly chased him before walking over to the police station to report the attempted break-in. He encounters Sgt. Paul Stone who was working with Police Explorers in the back parking lot. They began to take down the man’s description and begin a search.

“He never actually got in,” Bettencourt said.

A perimeter was set up around the condominium and Falco began a search.

Falco quickly found Galligan – all dirty and wet – hiding on the ground in a nearby swamp, Bettencourt said.

He was charged with attempted to break-in in the night with the intent to commit a felony and disorderly conduct.

An alert was sent out on Tuesday to the neighborhood watch from the Lawrence Street area, Bettencourt said. Lawrence Street is on the opposite side of Purchase Street from the condo complex. Bettencourt said he typically tries to notify the appropriate neighborhood watch group after a house break-in or series of car break-ins, for example. There are nine neighborhood watch groups in Danvers.

While an arrest hopefully brought it to an end, Bettencourt said it is still important for neighbors were notified “so they know what is going on.”