A burglary suspect on parole remained in custody Thursday after a drone-assisted investigation led to his arrest.
Palm Springs Police Department personnel received a report of a burglary shortly before 4:55 p.m. Wednesday in the 2300 block of Girasol Avenue, according to a department statement released Thursday afternoon.
Arriving officers established a perimeter around the residence, finding evidence that led them to believe that the front door had been “forcibly opened,” the department said.
After officers made multiple announcements and didn’t receive a response, they deployed a drone to assist with the search, according to the statement. The drone did not find the suspect but did locate multiple closed doors, which police investigated further.
At that point, officers sent a dog into the residence. Police said 41-year-old Eugene Kirkwood “emerged from hiding with his hands raised” seconds after and complied with the officers’ commands.
Kirkwood, whom the department said was already on active parole for first-degree burglary, was taken into custody at the Larry Smyth Correctional Facility in Banning on suspicion of felony counts of residential burglary and violating parole, as well as a misdemeanor charge of possessing burglary tools, according to inmate records.