Fayetteville police looking for possible burglar

Several residents have reported instances in recent weeks in which they have encountered a man in or around their homes. Police believe they could be break-in attempts.

Posted 5:56 p.m. Jan 23, 2009 — Updated 9:12 p.m. Mar 9, 2009

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Fayetteville police are looking for a man they believe is peeping into people's windows in an attempt to break into unoccupied homes.

Assistant Police Chief Katherine Bryant said Friday that several residents have reported instances in recent weeks in which they have encountered a man in their yards or banging on their doors.

When confronted, he runs off, Bryant said. There have been no reports of injuries.

Judy Wellons said she was at home last Friday when she found a clean, well-spoken man inside her house. She said he made up a story about seeing a prowler in her yard and wanted to let her know.

"He appears in the door, instantly. His next comment was: 'I'm not going to harm you,'" Wellons said. "I went along with that and did not argue. I just knew I needed to get out of the house."

In some cases, Bryant said, the intruder is described as a brown-haired man, possibly 50, driving a gold or beige Buick LeSabre.

"He's a very bold person," Bryant said." (He's) very aggressive, as afar as driving around, knocking on doors, having excuses for being in areas where he doesn’t belong."

In another case, a resident said she encountered a man with a similar description looking into her windows. When her husband opened the door, the man said he had he was from Raeford and had lost his dog.

Bryant said part of the problem in trying to identify a suspect is that police are not receiving reports of the incidences until too long after they occur. She urged residents to report such incidences immediately.

Bryant said North Carolina is ranked No. 1 in the nation for burglaries. In Fayetteville, according to 2007 police statistics, the latest available, there were 3,571 reports of burglary, up 1.5 percent from 2006.

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