At 9 p.m. Tuesday, Cape Coral police were called to a reported burglary in progress at 138 S.E. 40th St.

The caller told police that he arrived at his home and witnessed a man climbing out of his bedroom window. The man, who was dressed in black, got on a bicycle and fled into the neighborhood. The victim called police.

Police set up a perimeter around the neighborhood, and an officer observed a man fitting the description of the burglar riding a bicycle only a block away from the incident. The officer detained the man for questioning.

The man, identified as Nathan Patrick Dattolico, 27, of 103 S.E. 12th Terrace, reportedly refused requests from the officer to refrain from going into his pockets. Dattolico allegedly attempted to retrieve an item from his pocket and throw it away undetected. The officer saw and recovered the item, which was a syringe.

The victim was brought to the scene, where he identified Dattolico as the man who was fled his home.

Dattolico was taken into custody and charged with burglary of a dwelling, possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest.

“This is another success story of a citizen calling the Cape Coral Police Department without delay, thus giving us a chance to catch the criminal,” Lt. Tony Sizemore, the spokesman for the Cape police, said.

Source: Cape Coral Police Department