A New Hampshire man enrolled as a student at Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina is facing burglary charges after he allegedly broke into homes near the school’s campus and poured queso dip on someone’s television and furniture.
Alec Arinello, 19, of Windham, New Hampshire, is charged with three counts of first-degree burglary in connection with the break-ins, which occurred in the early-morning hours of Jan. 14. He has since been released on bail.
According to a police report, officers responded to a residence on Quail Run Road in Horry County, South Carolina, for a report of breaking and entering. When they arrived, police met with the caller, who told them that he and his girlfriend were sleeping when his girlfriend woke up to a man standing in their bedroom. The man noiced the caller and his giflfriend waking up and left the bedroom.
The caller told police he then locked his bedroom door, not knowing if the intruder might be armed. Eventually, they heard the intruder leave the residence.
The caller woke up his roommates, who began checking the neighborhood. They located the intruder a few houses away in a black SUV. The intruder eventually left the area.
The caller returned to his residence and found that the intruder had gone through his fridge, removing items including queso, eggs and salsa. The man had poured queso on the TV and furniture in the living room, smashed eggs on the floor and flipped the furniture over.
The caller said he believed the intruder was a Coastal Carolina University student, but said he doesn’t know him and he wasn’t invited over.
After interviewing the caller, police said they noticed a black Jeep with New Hampshire plates parked in the area that was not there when officers arrived. They heard someone walking in the woods nearby and a man later identified as Arinello emerged from the woods. Police told him to stop, at which point he began running away. Officers set up a quick perimeter and were able to take him into custody without further incident.
Several other residents showed up at the scene shortly thereafter and said that Arinello had also broken into their homes.
One person said Arinello had broken into their home and stolen a marijuana bong. Another said he had broken in and poured maple syrup over their TV, speakers and throughout the house. A third person said Arinello had attempted to make entry but couldn’t get in because the doors were locked. He then went to a neighbor’s house and attempted to break in there, but was met with another locked door and ran away. Two other residents reported similar break ins.
Inside Arinello’s vehicle, police found golf clubs, a marijuana bong and a Corona bar light, all of which were collected as postential evidence in the case.
Coastal Carolina University student Brian Rose was among the residents whose home was broken into. Although he didn’t see what happened, he told NBC affiliate WBTW he was in the home when the break-in occurred.
“I hear the door go boom. And I’m like, ‘What’s that?’” Rose said. “Because I thought it was my buddy… coming home from the bar. Nope, it was the milkman. It was the milk bandit. And I didn’t think anything of it. Went to the bathroom, went back to bed. Woke up the next morning, milk everywhere.”
Rose said Arinello isn’t known to him or his roommates.
“Total shot in the dark,” he said. “He just came out of nowhere. Didn’t know who he was.”
