Police are looking for a bumbling Lake Tahoe burglar who left his wallet behind at the scene of the crime before rifling through the home, eating their food, and nabbing the homeowner’s hat and shirt.
The Lake Tahoe homeowner returned home after his 3-week vacation on June 5 to discover his home had been broken into and found the wallet and a Visa debit card issued to Clarence Zillman, according to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office. Items had been moved, and his birth certificate was also missing.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said the home had been “unlawfully occupied.”
The suspected squatter was allegedly later caught on surveillance video strutting out of a Safeway wearing clothes stolen from the homeowner.
The bizarre footage shows the man leaving the Safeway at the Round Hill Shopping Center in Zephyr Cove — on the south shore of Lake Tahoe — decked out in the homeowner’s clothing, according to authorities.
Police tracked him to Safeway because a receipt for the purchase of two packs of Camel cigarettes was found at the scene. Investigators believe the receipt is linked to the man in the surveillance video.
The homeowner’s shirt was recovered at the scene, but his hat remains missing.
The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office in Nevada is asking for the public’s help in identifying the man, who is a person of interest in the case.
The investigation remains ongoing as of July 9.
The DCSO urges anyone with information to contact Investigator JT Davis at the Stateline Office at 775-586-7253.
