Police: Man used master key to break into rooms at Dunwoody hotel

Ryan Scott

Ryan Scott

A man is in jail after police said he used a master key to steal property from numerous hotel rooms.

Ryan Scott is being held in the DeKalb County jail on eight charges, including burglary and criminal trespass.

Dunwoody police were called to the Residence Inn by Marriott on Ashford Dunwoody Road after a man reported that his passport, an iPad, a Bluetooth speaker and noise-canceling headphones were taken from his room, Channel 2 Action News reported.

But Dunwoody police spokesman Sgt. Robert Parsons said the burglar wasn’t forcing his way into any of the rooms, Channel 2 reported.

“He acquired a master key to the hotel and entered numerous rooms, where he stole property over a couple of days,” Parsons said.

Parsons told Channel 2 the key had been reported missing by a hotel staff member Feb. 5, and it was being used to enter several of the rooms.

Parsons said security camera footage captured Scott in the hotel. He was arrested after hotel staff saw him in the hotel again and recognized him as the man from that footage.

When officers went to the hotel to find him, Scott was coming out of yet another hotel room, Parsons told Channel 2. Police said he has broken into at least five rooms.

"Our detectives are working to find out how he got the key,” Parsons told Channel 2. “Was it stolen, was it given to him? Every indication we have is that he possibly stole it from somewhere."

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