Alleged Burglar Who Left Behind Footprints Indicted

The Merrimack man who police said they apprehended after he left footprints behind at the scene of a January burglary, has been indicted by a grand jury at Hillsborough County Superior Court in Nashua on three charges connected to the incident.

Justin Harbeck, 21, of 1 Oak St., was indicted on one count of possession of a controlled drug, heroin; one count of receiving stolen property and one count of burglary. The charges constitute a range of felonies.

According to court documents, Harbeck was found in possession of jewelry worth more than $1,500 reported stolen from a neighboring home at 3 Oak St. The indictments also allege he broke into the home from which the jewelry was missing.

Police in January were called to 3 Oak St. after the homeowner found a broken window that was reportedly used to gain entry into the home. Police said they found numerous pieces of evidence while investigating, not the least of which were footprints left in the yard by the burglar.

While canvassing the neighborhood, Det. Christopher Dowling said he observed a print near a doorway at a home he'd stopped at to talk with the occupants. A search warrant was secured to look at the shoes in the home.

While conducting the search warrant, police say they located the shoes and items reported stolen from the neighbor.

According to court documents, Harbeck was also found to be in possession of heroin at the time of this incident. That charge is considered an unclassified felony that carries a sentence of up to 7 years in prison and up to $25,000 in fines.

The receiving stolen property charge constitutes a class A felony, which carries a 7 1/2 to 15 year prison sentence and up to $4,000 in fines. The burglary charge is a class B felony and carries a sentences of 3 1/2 to 7 years in prison and up to $4,000 in fines.

An indictment is not an indication of guilt, but rather a decision by a grand jury that there is enough evidence in a case to move it forward toward trial.