A man who police say broke into a closed downtown St. Augustine restaurant on Christmas Eve didn’t take cash or electronics — instead, he allegedly cooked himself a burger and guzzled a cold one.
According to a St. Augustine Police Department report, officers responded around 6:45 a.m. to a burglary-in-progress call at the Seafood Company on St. George Street.
Employees arriving for work told officers a man, later identified as a 30-year-old from Ave Maria, was inside the kitchen.
Officers entered the location and found the suspect casually manning the burners.
Police drew their firearms and ordered him to walk backward with his hands raised. He complied and was taken into custody without incident. Officers then cleared the rest of the building.
An employee told police he arrived around 6 a.m. to open the restaurant and that another staffer alerted him to the man’s startling presence.
They asked suspect what he was doing there, but he couldn’t provide a coherent explanation.
Staffers then left the building and called police.
Investigators determined that the suspect had entered the restaurant during closed hours without permission.
While inside, he allegedly cooked a burger — bun and all — and drank a beer taken from the restaurant’s cooler.
The value of the food and drink was estimated at about $20.
There were no signs of forced entry, though employees said all doors should have been locked overnight. The restaurant’s surveillance cameras were reportedly under maintenance at the time and did not capture the incident.
He was arrested and charged with burglary of a structure and petit theft.
Police later learned he had been involved in a physical altercation at the nearby No Name Bar earlier that morning, though it is unclear whether he went directly to the restaurant afterward.
