He hung out in hallways and loitered on Northern California elementary school campuses, apparently unafraid of being noticed.
When an administrator would question him, the man would say he was looking for a teacher or student to throw off the inquisitor. But, authorities allege, he was really in search of unattended purses and wallets belonging to unsuspecting staff members.
The Marin County Sheriff’s Office alleges Christopher Britton, of Fairfield, burglarized classrooms at several schools in February, making off with credit cards and running up thousands of dollars in unauthorized purchases.
Britton, 34, was arrested Friday morning at a Fairfield residence by a multi-county task force that included the Vacaville, Lafayette and Danville police departments, Dublin Police Services and the sheriff’s office.
Britton was charged with burglary, second-degree burglary, and using a credit card and information without consent, all felonies, and a pair of misdemeanors for obtaining credit using someone else’s identification, according to court records.
“His MO was to target elementary schools in the late afternoon at the time students and staff are on campus, but in meetings or after-school programs,” said Deputy Stephanie Ware, a spokesperson for the Marin County Sheriff’s Office.
Ware said three public elementary schools in the upscale suburb of San Rafael were burglarized: Lucas Valley, Mary Silveira and Venetia Valley.
From those schools, 10 teachers were bilked out of roughly $7,000 in credit card charges, Ware said.
Authorities are not certain about the total number of schools that Britton may have hit, Ware said, adding that investigators suspect there are victims in Marin, Contra Costa and Alameda counties.
The first incident was reported Feb. 12 at Mary Silveira. All three schools were hit in February. It is not clear how authorities connected Britton to the burglaries.
Ware described Lucas Valley and Mary Silveira as “pretty open campuses” that lacked gates that might discourage outsiders from wandering onto the premises.
Sheriff’s officials allege that Britton would wait for assemblies or other activities to sneak into unlocked classrooms where teachers left personal items.
He would limit the pilfering to one to two cards, authorities said, leaving cash and other valuables undisturbed to not arouse suspicion.
Once away from campus, he would use the cards to purchase goods, authorities allege.
Ware said some victims didn’t realize they had been ripped off, in some cases for weeks, until they reached for a specific credit card or checked bank statements.
“People keep multiple credit cards, so it’s not surprising,” Ware said.
