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CBS2 Exclusive: Burglary Suspect Apologizes When Woman Catches Him In House

HICKSVILLE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A Long Island burglary suspect may have thought he was targeting an empty house when he allegedly shattered a window, but the suspect ended up apologizing when the homeowner happened to be there.

As CBS2's Jennifer McLogan reported exclusively Monday, the suspect allegedly punched a hole through a bedroom window in Hicksville, causing it to shatter as he crawled inside to steal.

But the homeowner was actually taking a shower just before bed, and her two children were also inside the house fast asleep. When the woman confronted the suspect, he turned tail and ran – but not before apologizing to the frightened victim.

The homeowner, Alyssia, described the horror of hearing the sounds of shattering glass as she showered Saturday night.

"I was in the shower. It was late; about 10, 11 o'clock," she said. "I hear, like, glass breaking and ruffling, so I go to check on the kids. I'm thinking maybe they knocked over one of the lamps or something and broke the bulb. The kids are fine sleeping."

Alyssia said she then tiptoed toward her bedroom wrapped in a bath towel.

"As I'm passing the room – I usually keep the door closed – and I hear the glass breaking coming from the room. So I just pushed the door open and I could see the blood all over the blinds. And I yelled out," Alyssia said. "And the person said, 'Oh, I'm sorry.'"

The apology caught Alyssia off guard. The burglar, who cut himself on the window he had broken, retreated, according to police.

Her heart racing, Alyssia, a doctor's assistant, said she nearly fainted. But she said she had to stay strong for her children.

"I closed the door," she said. "I don't know what to do first -- should I put clothes on? Should I call the cops first? Should I get the kids up? Should I get them dressed?"

Alyssia said her husband, a security officer, was at work at the time. He raced home to the scene of mayhem.

The suspect – identified by police as Shane Lopez, 34 – allegedly fled out the back window he shattered to gain entrance.

Shane Lopez
Shane Lopez, 34, is accused of breaking into a house in Hicksville on Saturday, Oct. 10. (Credit: CBS2)

"We don't know what his intentions were," Alyssia said. "He said, 'Oh, I'm sorry,' when I yelled out."

Alyssia said the suspect's apology is not accepted.

"There was just a lot of blood," she said. "I believe the police followed a blood trail and found him."

The break-in was just down the street from a preschool. Days afterward, Alyssia was still shaking.

"I haven't slept," she said.

Lopez's family declined to comment. They noted that he took nothing and apologized, McLogan reported.

Bail for Lopez was set at $10,000.

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