A man pleaded guilty this month to burglary in a case cracked with the help of a photo he sent showing him inside the Cottage Grove home he burglarized.
As a woman and her two daughters vacationed in Mexico late last July, Rodney C. Houska III, 21, and his cousin broke into the family’s Janero Avenue home, according to the criminal complaint. While Houska and his cousin were in the home, he sent a message to a friend of one of the vacationing daughters. The message included a photo of Houska in the home. The friend told Houska they could not be in the home. She also sent a Snapchat video message to the vacationers alerting them to Houska’s message.
The family found the home burglarized when they returned from vacation Aug. 2. A screen on a kitchen window was open, there was dirt on the kitchen floor and a number of items were missing, including jewelry and electronics. The homeowner called police.
Authorities tracked down video and records showing Houska pawned some of the missing items at a Bloomington pawn shop on Aug. 5.
Houska’s cousin told police that Houska broke into the home and then let him in, and Houska loaded a backpack with items from the home. The cousin turned over some of the stolen items to police.
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Houska pleaded guilty to the felony second-degree burglary charge Feb. 3 and is scheduled to be sentenced April 4 in Washington County District Court.
