Man arrested for home burglaries

A 45-year-old homeless man was arrested Sunday for burglarizing two homes and possessing painkillers without a prescription.

Christopher Allen McDougal was charged with burglary, grand theft, two counts of grand theft of a controlled substance and four counts of possession of a controlled substance without a prescription.

Middle Keys Deputy Mario Benedetti was called to Tingler Lane at 3 p.m. where he met with the owner of the residence. The victim said he walked into his kitchen and saw a man, later identified as McDougal, drinking water. The man apologized after being confronted. The suspect then grabbed a backpack that belonged to the victim and left in the scene in a sport utility vehicle.

The owner said the backpack contained his painkiller medication for cancer, his driver license, credit cards and passport. Also reported stolen from the home were an iPad, a gallon of vodka, a $420 writing pen and $1,052 in cash among other items. The suspect SUV was later spotted on Coco Plum Drive. The victim identified the SUV as the one the suspect had driven away from his house in.

McDougal was found after illegally entering another residence on Coco Plum Drive. He admitted to entering both homes and stealing the afore mentioned items. He said he and his girlfriend have been camping and looking for places to stay.

McDougal was taken to jail.

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