CLERMONT – A Clermont man was behind bars Tuesday after breaking into a home and stealing a pack of Whoppers Malted Milk Balls.
According to an arrest report, Lake County Deputies responded to a call about a burglary in progress at 12:30 am Tuesday on Masters Drive in Clermont.
When deputies arrived, they found two of the front windows of the residence broken and a custom stone fountain damaged as well. After securing the scene, deputies spoke to the residents of the home who stated that they were both asleep when they heard a crashing sound coming from the front of the house.
Armed with a gun, the residents hid in the home and called 911 and waited for deputies to arrive.
When deputies searched the home, they found drops of blood in the kitchen, dining room, and on the blinds of the broken windows.
Deputies also found a silver cell phone with a black case and an empty wrapper from a pack of Whoppers Malted Milk Balls on the floor near a bowl of Halloween candy that was sitting on the dining room table.
According to the report, it appeared that someone pulled out stones from the fountain and used them to crash through the windows of the home.
While deputies were searching the home, another deputy noticed a man walking near where the patrol vehicles were parked. When questioned, they identified the man as 41-year-old Ryan William Stratton.
Stratton looked distraught and was bleeding from several cuts and abrasions and his clothes were dirty.
Deputies questioned Stratton who stated that he was “practicing trick-or-treating” with his daughters and he lost them. When questioned about the cuts, he replied, “I must of fell I guess.”
Stratton denied being in the victims’ home or throwing anything at the windows. When deputies asked Stratton if he had a cell phone, he stated that he owned a silver iPhone with a black case.
Stratton denied taking any medication, drugs, alcohol, or narcotics when asked by deputies.
During the investigation, Stratton’s wife approached deputies and informed them that Stratton was prescribed Ambien, a medication to help him sleep and that he had consumed Ambien with a bottle of wine. She also stated that Stratton came home and started making a lot of noise to the point where he woke up everyone in the home including their daughters and told his wife there was a “haunted house down the street but everything was okay since officers were on scene”.
Stratton was taken to Southlake Hospital to receive treatment for his injuries and was later transported to the Lake County Jail after he was medically cleared.
He was held on a total bond of $25,500 until he posted bail later that day.
Stratton is facing a felony count of burglary to an occupied dwelling exceeding $1000 damage and a misdemeanor count of petit theft for stealing the Whoppers Malted Milk Balls. He is scheduled to appear for arraignment on November 14 at 8:00 am.
Comments are closed.