Police said the girl, identified as Avery Cormier by CBS Boston, woke up around 7:20 p.m. from someone’s sound in her house. He then “bravely confronted” the man, later identified as 58-year-old Joseph Ridge, causing him to flee – and as he left, he took a video of the car he was driving with his license plate number on it.
“I took him out of the house. I scared him,” the girl told a 911 sender in an audio posted by police. “I took a video of his truck leaving, so I have his license plate number.” AUDIO: Courageous Teen’s Actions, Call 911 to Middleborough Police leads to arrest of burglary suspect http://t.co/wCcxwTeKbI – Middleborough Police (@MiddleboroughPD) April 15, 2022 Cormier’s mother, Dianne Tautkus, told CBS Boston that her daughter scared Ridge while she was holding two steak knives. Police confirmed at a news conference Saturday afternoon that they had been told he had snatched a knife before confronting the intruder. “I really did not realize she had it inside her to stay so calm under the fire,” Tautkus said. “He grabbed two kitchen steak knives and went back, stood outside the door and started shouting at him. ‘Leave my house.’ Get out of my house. You do not belong here. “ Ritz was arrested shortly afterwards and charged with aggravated burglary and entry during the day, assault and disorderly conduct, police said. The department said Ritz was “well known” to police and had been released on bail for an “irrelevant incident”. Police said Ritz had been charged more than 130 times before his arrest on Friday and had a “history of violence”. They also said he had no specific relationship with the family. “I would like to congratulate this girl on her courageous actions. Even in the midst of an extremely frightening event, her bravery helped us identify the man believed to have been responsible for the intrusion into her home,” said Middleborough Police Chief. Joseph Perkins. According to CBS Boston, Perkins said she was an honorary student who was at home that day because it was Good Friday. In a lawsuit filed Friday, a judge set Ridge’s bail at $ 200,000, CBS Boston reported. If Ridge guarantees, he should be under house arrest with a GPS monitor. “The suspect in this case is a career criminal who was arrested after terrorizing a 14-year-old girl in her own home,” Perkins added. “Let’s hope that his arrest this time will bring the known perpetrator to account for his crimes.”

Victoria Albert

Victoria Albert is a news editor at Sr. on CBS News. Contact her at [email protected]