Editor's Note: This story has been modified to include the information that the U.S. Border Patrol agents assisted in the search and capture of the suspect.
A suspect who had just been released from jail, then decided to burglarize area homes, was caught Tuesday after hiding in heavy brush for two hours, police said.
Marcus Erich Gordon, 61, was taken back into custody following a search of the canyon in Warm Springs Creek.
He was re-booked into the Southwest Detention Center, this time on suspicion of residential burglary -- a serious felony triggering a strike upon conviction -- and attempted burglary.
Bail was set at $35,000, pending a court appearance Friday, jail records indicate.
Murrieta police at 7:35 p.m. Tuesday were called to the 28000 block of Prarie Falcon Court to investigate reports about a man wearing a Waste Management reflective vest trying to break into homes, a sergeant said.
According to police, the suspect was kicking doors and trying handles, finally getting into a home where children were alone; they ran out and the suspect grabbed jewelry and watches, MPD Sgt. Jay Froboese said in a written statement.
A neighbor confronted the suspect with a baseball bat, scaring the man off, the sergeant said, and into a canyon at Warm Springs Creek.
Before running off, the suspect told the neighbor he had a gun and was going to kill the resident, Froboese said.
Police quickly surrounded the Warm Springs Creek Canyon area, using night-vision googles and dogs, Froboese said.
MPD officers were assisted by U.S. Border Patrol agents, the sergeant said.
The canyon was also lighted but after two hours, there was no success and police began to break down the perimeter containment they had set up, the sergeant said.
The suspect got on the move again and was spotted by a nearby resident who had been given a description of the suspect.
According to police, the property owner asked the suspect, '"Are you the good guy or the bad guy?”'
The suspect allegedly answered, "'I’m the black guy,"' Froboese wrote.
Police were called and quickly took the suspect into custody.
"Gordon had just been released at 6:15 p.m. from ... jail after being arrested earlier today in Menifee for battery on a Pollice Officer and reckless driving," Froboese wrote.
"He did not have a ride and was on foot wandering with no destination when he decided to burglarize some houses; He did not have a gun and it is unknown where he obtained the Waste Management vest."
Froboese said that the suspect did have jewelry and watches in his pocket that were linked to the burglary on Prairie Falcon; these items were returned to their owners, he said.
