911 Call Leads to Burglary Arrest

A 28-year-old Port Washington man is in custody after a town of Saukville couple reported seeing a suspicious person having entering a neighbor’s residence.

Tyler Fendt, 538 N. Webster St., is facing a felony charge of burglary and two misdemeanor charges for possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia. He remains in custody on $5,000 cash bail. He faces up to $25,000 in fines, 12-1/2 years in jail, or both, for the felony charge.

The 911 call came in to the at 2:10 p.m. Tuesday from James and Melissa Lierman, according to a press release from the Sheriff's Office. The callers were concerned about a suspicious person seen entering a neighbor’s residence in the 1800 block of Meadowlark Rd.

Fendt is set to appear in Ozaukee County Circuit Court at 10 a.m. March 7 for a status hearing.

More from the press release:

Detectives and Drug Task Force members responded and determined that prescription narcotics matching the type found in Fendt’s vehicle had been taken from the homeowner’s residence. Nothing else was reported stolen. Upon interview, Fendt admitted to entering the residence in search of narcotics to support his heroin addiction. He was familiar with the area as he was a news paper carrier. 

"The quick reaction by the concerned neighbor in this case resulted in this burglary being thwarted. Without the benefit of the Lierman’s call this criminal, due to his drug addiction, would likely have continued to victimize others until he was caught," Sheriff Maury Straub said.

"This type of concern for our neighborhoods, and our community, and cooperation with law enforcement allows us to keep our county safe and our crime rate low," Straub added. 

"I want to encourage all of our citizens to get involved, as the Liermans did, and report anything suspicious or out of the ordinary in their neighborhoods," he said.