Man charged with burglary of University of Scranton students
SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — One man is accused of multiple burglaries of University of Scranton students who live off-campus.
According to Scranton police, early in the morning on Sunday, February 11, officers received several reports of burglaries and thefts in the 400 block of Clay Avenue that occurred as off-campus students from the University of Scranton were either not home or distracted in the home.
Investigators say they gathered video surveillance of three suspects believed to be involved in the incidents, running from the back of a home after being discovered inside by a student.
According to a criminal complaint, police learned that the three suspects were on Clay Avenue earlier in the night attempting to get into parties.
Police say one of the suspects shared his Instagram page with another student who lives on Clay Avenue and this helped officers identify him as Dylan Womack (pictured below).
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The criminal affidavit reads that police spoke with the students who discovered the theft suspects inside his home on Clay Avenue.
Police say sometime between 3:30 and 4:00 a.m. the student and his roommate were on the first floor of the home when he decided to go upstairs to charge his phone, running into one of the burglary suspects.
Investigators say the students asked who the suspect was and why he was inside the home, which prompted the suspect to immediately run from the home, followed by the other two suspects whom the student didn’t initially see.
The affidavit states that police have footage of the burglary suspects fleeing the home and one of them falls, prompting the student to run and grab him, however, the suspect says, “What [expletive] I have a gun, I’ll shoot you,” which causes the student to back away, allowing the suspect to escape.
Investigators say Womack was taken into custody on a warrant for criminal trespassing when he was interviewed by Scranton police.
Officers say Womack admitted to being chased from the house by a student, stealing items during the burglary, and that he and the other two suspects stole items and they all knew what they were doing.
Students at the University of Scranton are still shocked by the recent crimes and some have expressed that there is a strong presence of security on campus and off-campus housing.
“I personally live on Clay, so I’ve seen what’s been going on and the police are always there right away, whenever we call them or need them. But, even during the day like, I’ll see cop cars and things like that,” said Lucy Berquist, a junior at the University of Scranton.
“I do personally feel safe, I feel like the Scranton police and the university police have a presence on campus and I feel safe when they’re around,” said Anna Donnellan, a sophomore at the University of Scranton.
Womack was taken into custody, arraigned, and remanded to Lackawanna County Prison, as he wasn’t able to post the $30,000 cash bail.
Womack faces felony charges of burglary, criminal conspiracy engaging in burglary, criminal trespassing, theft by unlawful taking, and receiving stolen property.
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