Police say a burglar who tore through an apartment building’s drywall in an attempt to escape instead found himself trapped in an air duct and had to be freed by Seattle firefighters.
According to Seattle's KIRO-TV, the burrowing burglar's saga began Tuesday when he allegedly mangled a soda machine in the apartment's laundry room, only to grab a fistful of quarters, police said.
According to police, one of the neighbors caught the burglar in the act. On the spot, the burglar used his tools to screw the door shut to plan his next move, which involved cutting through the wall, the neighbor told police.
Neighbors believe that the burglar tore through five walls to gain access to other rooms.
His biggest mistake? Crawling into the basement and trying to break outside.
"The basement's all stone and rock, and so he was kind of done going through walls at that point,” neighbor TJ Davis said. “Then it looks like he was trying to work his way back up to a crevice to the alley, and that's where he got stuck."
The burglar reportedly was trapped between air ducts, where tenants found him.
“We tracked him down to the garage, and we cracked open this door," Billy, another neighbor, said.
"He was stuck in the vents crying for help, and it was kind of pitiful."
It took Seattle firefighters quite a while to cut the burglar out. Tenants recorded his moment of freedom on video.
“The cops asked him what his name was so they could get him medical attention, and he said he was 'Heroin,'" one neighbor said.
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