Intruder suspected of ransacking Petaluma home escapes police

An intruder suspected of ransacking an east Petaluma home Tuesday night was able to evade a large police response in a residential neighborhood next to Prince Park.

Hostage negotiators and the SWAT team were called when police attempted to go the front door of a home on Cardinal Way around 8:30 p.m. but officers felt it push back until it closed, said Petaluma Police Lt. Tim Lyons.

Police assumed the intruder was still inside, and called in more than a dozen additional officers, an armored truck and a tactical vehicle to set up a command center outside the home.

A tactical team eventually searched the home after using a PA system to order whoever was inside to surrender, Lyons said. No one was found and police do not have any details about the suspect, or know if there were multiple people involved.

Police did not set up a perimeter around the house quickly enough, and whoever was still inside was able to escape without being detected, Lyons said.

“That’s probably when the person got out,” he said. The home backs up to other residential properties, and the neighborhood is bordered by the Lynch Creek Trail and Prince Park, which could have aided a fleeing suspect, he said.

A woman who lived inside called 911 when she came home and discovered smashed kitchenware, broken mirrors and other damaged items. Police are not aware of any stolen valuables, Lyons said.

The woman was outside with police and they tried to get in assuming the residence was empty before the door was pushed shut. No one else was with her when she returned home and saw the damage, Lyons said.

There were no signs of forced entry, and no other homes in the area reported a similar break-in.

You can reach Staff Writer Yousef Baig at 707-521-5390 or yousef.baig@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @YousefBaig.