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Police: Man Breaks into South Windsor Home, Hides in Attic

Andrew Swegman, 34, of Vernon faces burglary, larceny charges.

A 34-year-old Vernon man is facing several charges after being found Thursday hiding in the attic of a South Windsor home he had allegedly attempted to burglarize, according to police.

Andrew Swegman, 34, of 17 Regan Street, Vernon, was charged with burglary in the third degree and larceny in the sixth degree, according to South Windsor police spokesperson Sgt. Scott Custer.

His arrest came after police responded to a suspicious persons report on Neiderwerefer Road, near Dart Hill Road, according to police.

A Neiderwerfer resident allegedly saw Swegman ring a neighbor's doorbell and then go behind a house, Custer said.

South Windsor police officers were on the scene within one minute and found an open window at the rear of the home, Custer said. Officers set up a perimeter around the home and later entered the home with a Vernon police department canine team, Custer said in a statement.

Swegman was located in the attic and officers subsequently recovered coins and jewelry that he had taken from a bedroom.  

Swegman was held on a $500,000 surety bond and will be presented at Manchester Superior Court on Friday, Oct. 26.

"This was a great example of neighbors watching out for suspicious persons and notifying the police immediately," Custer wrote in an e-mail. "We were fortunate that Sgt. Tom Field was nearby and was on scene within 45 seconds, thus trapping the suspect in the home and preventing his escape."

Swegman, according to Custer, is also wanted by the Connecticut State Police on an outstanding arrest warrant for burglary, larceny and criminal mischief.

Elle Smith Fagan October 26, 2012 at 01:42 pm
Yes!
Good Work, Good neighbors! Fine VPD response and hugs for pups!
MICHELE M WILSON October 26, 2012 at 11:52 pm
Excellent team work !
And kudos to the neighbor that called that in! Michele M Wilson - ADT
julie maxis October 27, 2012 at 04:11 am
Screw all you judgemental people. he did it because his power was about to be shut off he got laid of and has a 2 year old daughter at home and he paniced. What he did was wrong but people panic when they are in desperate need to help their family. He made a bad desicion he's not a bad person and he is a wonderful father to that little girl and the so called warrent from the state is bogus mis information that the media twisted
Vernon Taxpayer October 27, 2012 at 04:59 am
Make some calls there is help out there. Call the power company for an extension, with a small child they should be able to help. Get in touch with Social Services and the Hockanum Valley Council (860) 872-7727 for food and other supplies. There is never an excuse to steal. Poor judgment is not an excuse. Ask for help everybody needs help sometime in their life.
LOL October 27, 2012 at 10:49 am
Judgmental people??? For praising the neighbor and PD in preventing a felony?
robin mills October 27, 2012 at 06:21 pm
Um excuse me Andrew is not a scumbag. He is a great father who just made a bad decision.You have no right to sit here and judge a man you don't even know. His power was going to get shut off and he has a 2 year old daughter at home. He is a great father and a great person who was just trying to keep his daughter safe but just made a bad decision. So stop saying he's a scumbag and vermin when you don't even know him or his story. Everyone makes mistakes.At least his was to help his family. Hes not a bad person he's just in a bad place right now,so stop judging him cause you don't have any right to talk down about him.
Ted Glanzer (Editor) October 27, 2012 at 06:58 pm
Just as a reminder to remain civil in our comments and not make any personal attacks. Thank you. tdg
Loretta T October 28, 2012 at 06:05 pm
To Julie and Robin, you are correct we don't know him we only know of his crime. No one came on here calling him names but you. I was a single mother of TWO children that was also in a bad place but I NEVER chose to break into anyone house. There are always other options. Why would ANYONE risk going to jail over raising their child? According to the State of CT Judicial website this is not his first arrest. I do wish him luck but their is no excuse to rob ANYONE. I hope the two of you are helping him and providing him with assistants. Please have him call 211 for further assistance. Also in Vernon the Hockanum Valley food bank is available. Have him apply for food stamps, state assistance, Husky Health Care and join Freecycle.org for free items for his child.
CC October 29, 2012 at 03:08 am
Absolutely! There is help out there, I was w/out power for a month not long ago...and struggle on a daily to support my child--alone! Have I ever decided to go into a strangers home & steal & hide in the attic?? Sorry but NO! Do the crime--Do the time! Yeah, maybe he is a "good" guy, but he got arrested & it's public knowledge, there for people will express there opinions.!
CC October 29, 2012 at 03:13 am
So..Julie and Robin, u wouldn't mind if someone that's a good person and is just trying to support there family...steals from u both? Right in your home? Your "safe haven"? But it's ok, if its a complete stranger...right?

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Gail Cloutier June 15, 2013 at 04:20 pm
One Mr. Yagaloff I was not rude to anyone else I was talking about you and was not in no mean rudeRead More to you. If you take it that way then so be it. Do I wish to talk to you no, cause it won't do any good. Everyone has given their own comment and the damage is done and now it's time for eveyone to learn from it and move on.
keith yagaloff June 15, 2013 at 05:11 pm
Gail, I agree that its time for everyone to learn from this incident. It is a teachable moment asRead More well. Both the Boy Scout and Cub Scout oaths can be the source of guidance in this instance. Scouting asks its youth to obey the rules of the pack and the law. Here is a direct quote "DUTY TO GOD AND COUNTRY: Your family and religious leaders teach you to know and serve God. By following these teachings, you do your duty to God. Men and women of the past worked to make America great, and many gave their lives for their country. By being a good family member and a good citizen, by working for your country's good and obeying its laws, you do your duty to your country. Obeying the Scout Law means living by its 12 points." The fundraising committee made a mistake. Choosing to adopt the mean spirited rhetoric of the Chair of the Republican Town Committee is not what these children expect or deserve. The BSA leadership stepped up and are leading by example. I met my responsibility as a community leader. Can you say the same?
Gail Cloutier June 15, 2013 at 07:11 pm
If you feel the same as me as everyone needs to stop and move on. I can clearly see you can't, causeRead More of the long letter above. I was always told by my wonderful parents to mind your own busy and not someone else. God Bless to us all and Good Bye.............
Rick Usifer June 11, 2013 at 06:38 pm
I agree that these statements seem inappropriate. I wasn't at the meeting and didn't see it, butRead More from this account an apology is certainly in order. I'm surprised that Dr. Anwar, a thoughtful and reasonable man, would say that to someone who absolutely did the right thing. One of South Windsor's biggest attributes is that is NOT a "large" town. That would have cost us revenue in other areas such as housing. I'm very disappointed in both men.
Dana June 12, 2013 at 09:22 am
It seems to me that Dr. Anwar and Mr. Delnicki do not like the truth and would rather the town liveRead More a lie than to let the public know reality. Hopefully the public sees this and votes for those who tell the truth.
Hank Cullinane June 12, 2013 at 03:45 pm
While I do think Deputy Mayor Bazzano said "funny" I think his opponents are trying toRead More take his statement out of context. I believe he said it was funny that the magazine has us in large towns. That is funny as is strange not it ha ha. Is he going to get an apology from Council Anwar I doubt it. As to losing business, I hope any business planning on coming to South Windsor is not doing it solely on a Hartford Magazine article. Now we can also publicize the integrity of our town officials who wanted the information to be correct.
Kevin McCann:  Don't we deserve better?
Darren DeMartino June 7, 2013 at 03:51 pm
Mike, While I too would like to address thew schools we cant change the fact that are town isRead More slipping in comparison to other towns around us. do you still feel the same way that the ratings didnt come at a convenient time? The truth is we need to invest in in our town to maintain the quality of life people are looking for today. If we dont do it we will not remain an attractive place to live. There are a number of towns in our area that have faced these choices. Some of those town have decided to look to the future and others have fallen behind, not very surprisingly some of our surrounding towns have fared much better over the past 15-20 years than others. The key questions is what does the town of South Windsor want to be? I want it to maintain the quality of life it had since I was a small child. That means growing and investing not letting others pass us by because people are short sighted. I think we need too challenge our town council to look at the towns around us and figure out how they do so much more yet our taxes aren't much different that ours. We pay a lot for very little in comparison to other towns in our area. We get trash and leaf pickup, not that big of a deal cost wise yet we dont get new schools, rec center, senior center, or neccessary fields. We should all want more for our tax dollar!
Michael Sullivan June 12, 2013 at 01:19 pm
Mr. DeMartino - I will stand by what I've said earlier, even after Mr. Bazzano corrected SouthRead More Windsor's rankings in Hartford Magazine. Yes I think this is (still!) good news and as such always welcome and convenient. My earlier comment was that these favorable rankings come at a rather inconvenient time for THOSE WHO PREFER to propagandize and insist that our salvation will come only in the form of more athletic fields and further that we must borrow more money to build them! These revised rankings don’t change anything in my opinion (with the exception of the crime statistic – that’s alarming if not an error!) and meanwhile the TC politics and propagandizing over our “status” is deplorable. I maintain these rankings STILL represent great news for South Windsor. We’re ranked no. 3 in our medium towns group (if not overall). We’re ranked no. 2 for families and schools in our medium group. And STILL we’re in top 10 overall for the county. And still that's just not good enough for some folks?!?
Michael Sullivan June 12, 2013 at 01:25 pm
WRT wanting more for our tax dollars - oh yes there we can agree! But how might we agree onRead More priorities? I don’t see the need for borrowing money NOW to build UNNECESSARY (there I said it!) athletic fields no matter which other towns are perceived to be better/worse than South Windsor by our athletics enthusiasts who might prefer to bypass public referendum to get their desires. I feel strongly that the Town has other priorities – particularly if we must borrow! You cite two prime examples in the elementary schools due to their obsolescence – and the need for taking care of our seniors for rec/community space and aged-care social services that will surely be needed with predictable demographic trends. Let’s do those before we talk about more athletic facilities.
Bert Marchael June 15, 2013 at 09:00 pm
It was Bush's fault. He let the IRS stay in business. In the words of Nancy Pelosi, this will be theRead More most transparent administration, what she failed to say out loud was, this administration looks at the constitution and the laws of our country as suggestions. They pertain to everyone else. Gangsta Chicago politics in Washington. Peace