FAITH ó A Salisbury teenager has been charged after a business owner caught him breaking into his bakery.
Justin Ray Merritt, 17, of 125 Town and Country Drive, faces charges of felony breaking, entering, and larceny and felony possession of stolen property.
Granite Quarry-Faith police responded Saturday night to a reported breaking and entering at Yosties Bakery, 202 N. Main St. Owner Gary Yost told officers that after unlocking the front door at the business, he heard an interior door open and saw a teenage boy running out the back door.
Sgt. K.W. Trivett and officers D.W. Dearth and M.C. Milette began searching the area and called in a Rowan County Sheriff’s Office deputy with a dog to help track the suspect. Within a short time, Dearth located Merritt, who matched the suspect’s description, on St. Paul’s Road near Odell Road.
Dearth took Merritt into custody on an outstanding Rowan County warrant and found several dollar bills, a large amount of change and several antique coins in his pockets, a press release said. Dearth took Merritt back to Yosties, where he confessed to breaking in and stealing from the business, the press release said.
Merritt was placed under a $5,000 bond in the Rowan County jail with a first appearance in court scheduled for today.