After apprehending and interviewing one suspect in a November home burglary on Michigan Road, police say they believe a second criminal was involved.
Police last week arrested a 29-year-old Stamford man on a felony charge—second-degree burglary—after gathering finger and palm prints after the incident, which occurred at 3:16 a.m. on Nov. 8.
Miguel Palencia. Photo courtesy of the New Canaan Police Department
That man, Miguel Palencia, told police after his arrest that an accomplice, identified only as “Chino,” had been deported since the burglary to El Salvador, New Canaan Police Sgt. Peter Condos said Monday.
“We believe there is a second person,” Condos said.
After the homeowner woke up to noises downstairs in the house—though he did not see two people—both the front and back doors of the home were flung open as the burglars exited, Condos said.
Children were sleeping inside the home at the time of the attempted burglary, Condos said.
New Canaan Police Sgt. Peter Condos. Credit: Michael Dinan
“They went out both sides of the house, so we believe there were two,” he said. “They had pried off a screen to the window, so the window was broken and finger and palm prints were found inside and outside the residence.”
Palencia is in custody and officials are trying to determine his visa status now, Condos said. Police recovered prints on Palencia from inside the home’s garage and dining room, Condos said, but not from the second suspect.