Saturday morning, a drunk male tried to enter the wrong house and broke a car window.
On Feb. 25th, at about 1:30am, the Saanich Police officers were dispatched to the 1800 block of San Juan avenue. A resident had contacted police when some unknown male was attempting to enter the home. Apparently, he was young, appeared drunk and was insistent that he be let in.
Upon arriving, two officers spotted the male between two vehicles in the driveway, immediately next to a smashed out window. A 21 year old Saanich resident was arrested. He was found to be intoxicated and had a scratch on his hand believed to have happened when he broke the window.
The young man fully confessed to breaking the window and immediately offered to pay for the damages. He stated that he had been downtown and had little memory of what had happened after that. This was unusual for him as he doesn’t ‘…usually drink that much.’
Although not typical of incidents like this, because he had no criminal record and appeared remorseful, a dayshift officer took the time to contact the victim. The victim agreed to an informal resolution and priced out the repair at $220.00 dollars at a local glass shop.
Immediately upon his release from jail, the young man went directly to the bank and returned with the money. He further asked for an email address so he could prepare a letter of apology.
“It is unusual that we see an offender take immediate responsibility for their actions, offer to pay for damages and then return with money in hand all in a matter of hours. I am sure there is a life lesson in there somewhere,” says Sergeant Dean Jantzen.
12-3742