It’s usually an extremely dangerous scenario when someone breaks into a home armed with a rifle, but things were a bit different during a recent break-in in New Mexico.
An intruder armed with an AR-15 rifle recently entered a Santa Fe home through a broken window and slept, took a bath, ate a meal and drank some beer, but did not steal anything, according to a police report from the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office.
The report stated that the suspect’s total larceny was valued at just $15.
When the homeowners returned, they found dirty dishes in the sink, empty beer bottles and a man in the backroom. The embarrassed intruder did not threaten them but apologized and left $200 as “reimbursement for the window he broke.”
The man — later identified as Teral Christesson, 34 — did not take any jewelry or other items but said he was on the run and that his family was killed in east Texas. He added that his car broke down 100 miles outside of Santa Fe.
The homeowners said Christesson was “extremely embarrassed and apologetic about the situation.” He was last seen walking down a ditch with a duffel bag and a gun, wearing a blue jacket and baggy jeans.
Deputies later searched the area but did not locate the man until days later when they spotted a person who fit the description.
Christesson was arrested and booked in the Santa Fe County Adult Detention Facility on charges of larceny, criminal damage to property and aggravated burglary.
Sheriff’s office spokesman Juan Rios told reporters that Christesson “did confess to the detectives about the burglary at the home where he was found.”