George, Iowa — A George man has been arrested on burglary and criminal mischief charges after an incident in George.
According to a criminal complaint filed with the Lyon County Clerk of Court’s Office by the county sheriff’s office, 25-year-old Frederick Buckalew of George is accused of breaking into two homes. He was arrested on Saturday.
In his statement, the deputy states they believe Buckalew made his way to a home on East Iowa Avenue where he allegedly took blocks out of the landscaping and proceeded to break multiple windows out of the three vehicles in the driveway. He’s also accused of throwing blocks through the rear window and door window in the victims’ camper. He is then believed to have proceeded to the front door of the house where he attempted to make entry into the house, causing the window glass in the front door to break. There is also an active protection order between the defendant and the victim, who was in the house at the time.
Deputies believe he then moved to a neighbor’s residence across the backyard. Buckalew is accused of throwing a rock, causing the glass in the door to break as well as the screen door. He is then thought to have broken a window in a truck. He allegedly tried a second time to break in the front door, using his hand this time to break the glass, and gained entry.
When he walked in, he encountered a juvenile girl who had been sleeping on the couch, but was awakened by the breaking glass. She yelled for her parents. The deputy says that caused Buckalew to exit the house followed shortly after by the father, who is said to have chased him down the street before losing sight of him.
Buckalew was charged with two counts of second-degree burglary, a class C felony, and one count of second-degree criminal mischief, a class D felony. If convicted of a class C felony, Buckalew could face up to ten years in prison, with five years in prison on the class D felony charge.
Buckalew faces a preliminary hearing on the charges on September 29th.
At last report, Buckalew remained in the Lyon County Jail in Rock Rapids in lieu of a $15,000 bond.
