21-year-old man details burglary operation to Manatee deputies

MANATEE -- A Tennessee man told deputies how he and two other men would target homes in Manatee County for burglary because it was an "adrenaline rush," according to the Manatee County Sheriff's Office.

Zachary Stein, 21, was arrested in February after a burglary in Holmes Beach and agreed to speak with deputies about several other burglaries they believed he committed with Austin Hale and Jimmy Harris, according to an arrest report.

On Feb. 23, Stein agreed to let deputies drive him around Manatee County so he could point out other homes they burglarized. He told deputies they did it because it was an "adrenaline rush," and "they saw how easy it was to enter the homes," according to the report.

Stein told deputies the three's process for picking a home to ensure no one would be there, which included checking the mailbox to see if there was a lot of mail and picking homes with garages that had windows or doors and they could see no car was inside. If they thought no one was home, Stein said they would kick a door in or break a window and wait to see if anyone showed up or an alarm went off.

If no one showed up, Stein said they would then enter the home. They would pull their car into the garage so they could load up the vehicle with stolen items. Stein said he was mainly looking for "drugs, money or gold." He said Hale and Harris were, "into the electronics," and Harris was the one who "always took the televisions."

Stein said they would then bring everything back to Hale's Bradenton home, and Stein would typically sell the televisions to drug dealers.

During the drive, Stein picked out one home in the 1300 block of 51st Avenue Drive West in Palmetto. He said he kicked in the door of that residence on Feb. 1 but they heard police coming so they left without entering. Deputies found a case report on that incident.

Stein pointed out another house in the 4100 block of Third Avenue East in Bradenton and told deputies he had kicked that door in after Harris tried and couldn't do it. A woman a few houses down came outside so they left without going inside. Deputies also found a case number on that, and found the woman reported damage in the amount of $1,400 because the frame also had to be replaced.

Stein was charged with attempted burglary of an occupied dwelling and criminal mischief and is being held in the Manatee County jail on bonds totaling $9,000. Harris and Hale were charged with burglary of an unoccupied dwelling and are each being held in the jail on $75,000 bond.

This story was originally published March 2, 2016 at 9:39 AM with the headline "21-year-old man details burglary operation to Manatee deputies ."