Brent Michael Brodie woke up on the wrong side of the law Tuesday.
The 18-year-old was arrested on suspicion of burglarizing homes and stealing cars in south Irvine and Newport Beach after he was found dozing in a stolen car filled with stolen goods, police said.
Just before 7 a.m., Brodie was awakened by Irvine police as they responded to reports of a suspicious car in the neighborhood, according to a news release from the Irvine Police Department.
Detectives said laptops, jewelry and other items in the car tied Brodie to five home burglaries and two car thefts over the past four weeks. According to police, Brodie would check the homes to see if anyone was inside, then enter through unlocked ground floor windows.
The two cars were stolen from the home burglary locations, and police said Brodie had the keys.
Irvine police recovered computers, designer handbags, jewelry and a gold watch believed to be worth tens of thousands of dollars, the news release said.
Detectives were working to return the stolen property to the owners. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call the Irvine Police Department at 949-724-7200.
