An 18-year-old who deputies say burglarized a home in the Tiburon community last year was arrested Monday after a soda can left at the North Naples home tested positive for his DNA.
On Oct. 22, a man on the 2500 block of Escada Drive called the Collier County Sheriff's Office to report that someone had stolen two boxes of Ashton Monarch cigars, a wallet with $3,000 inside, a cigar box with $802 inside, a Bulgari watch worth $3,500, a pair of 3D glasses and some wine and liquor from his home.
That same day, a neighbor reported that it appeared someone had entered their home overnight to eat and drink their food and beverages. The neighbor said the intruder had left behind an ice cream container, some red Solo cups and a soda can in the kitchen.
Investigators submitted the soda can to a state crime lab and said they learned on March 5 that 18-year-old Patrick Michael McArdle was a match to the DNA profile on the can.
McArdle had previously been arrested in November in connection with another burglary on Escada Drive. In that case, the homeowner went after McArdle with a golf club when he found him rifling through the kitchen cabinets.
McArdle said he was in the neighborhood at the time of the November burglary but didn't recall entering the home. He told deputies he drinks alcohol and is on prescription medication that causes him to black out and said when he awoke the next morning, he had a mark on his chest.
The November burglary case is still pending in court. As of Tuesday, McArdle remained jailed on the new charges in lieu of bonds totaling $15,000.
Copyright 2014 - Naples Daily News, Fla.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
