Accused Mount Prospect Home Invader In Video Arrested: Cops

MOUNT PROSPECT, IL — A 55-year-old Arlington Heights man with a long criminal history of burglary convictions is accused of breaking in to a Mount Prospect residence while a 16-year-old girl was in the home, police said. Scott A. Weissert, of the 1200 block of North Waterman Avenue, was arrested Tuesday and charged with residential burglary stemming from the July 23 home invasion, which was caught on video by a security camera, according to a statement by the Mount Prospect Police Department. He was ordered held on $200,000 bail, and his next court date is Aug. 24.

Police responded to a residential burglary call at around noon July 23 at a home in the 300 block of North William Street. When they arrived, officers spoke with the girl who called police and was upstairs in her bedroom when the incident happened. She said she heard knocking at the front door, but she didn't answer. (Get Patch real-time email alerts for the latest Arlington Heights news. And iPhone users: Check out Patch's new app.)

RELATED: Girl's Screams Scare Off Mount Prospect Home Invader Caught On Security Camera (VIDEO)

According to police, Weissert allegedly kicked in the front door, and the teen then locked herself in her bedroom once he was inside the house. When Weissert allegedly made his way upstairs and tried to open the girl's bedroom door, she began screaming, police said. That's when Weissert fled the house, according to police.

After the security camera footage of the incident was released, police received tips that led them to investigate Weissert as a suspect. Officers executed a search warant Tuesday at Weissert's Arlington Heights residence, where they found items that connected him to the Mount Prospect burglary. He then was taken into custody in front of his home, police said.

Since 1981, Weissert has racked up 18 felony convictions, and all but one of those was for burglary, according to the Daily Herald. He was on parole from his latest conviction in 2006 in which he was sentenced 20 years, the report stated. He also was sentenced to 20 years for a 1996 burglary convinction, and he was found guilty of 10 burglaries in 1984, the report added.

Weissert faces up to 15 years in prison if he's convicted of last month's burglary in Mount Prospect.

UPDATED (10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 3)

Scott A. Weissert, 55 (Photo via Mount Prospect Police Department)

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