A 32-year-old Providence man is facing charges of breaking and entering, receiving stolen goods, possession of burglary tools and other charges after he was found inside a Greenling Lane woman's house by police responding to an attempted burglary call.
Elvis Hopkins, of 183 Camp Ave., Providence, was taken into custody after a brief struggle but not after he fled, on foot, through backyards and across Meshanticut Valley Parkway, dropping stolen goods on lawns along the way.
According to Police, the Greening Lane resident called police just before 2:30 p.m. when she got home and saw the gate to her back yard was ajar and a bicycle she didn't recognize was leaning against the gate.
Officers Rebekah Neri and Daryl Fish responded and began checking the perimeter of the house. Fish noticed sounds from inside the house, so they called for backup.
Neri rounded the corner and saw a white man running through the back yard carrying a black duffel bag.
That man was Hopkins, police said, and he dropped the duffel bag and ran through several back yards as he fled, discarding stolen property as he ran.
Officer Julie Furgasso came to the area and soon saw Hopkins running across Meshanticut Valley Parkway toward Tupelo Hill Drive. She got out of her cruiser and ran after him, following him through backyards until he ran behind a house on White Birch Drive.
It was then that Det. Paul Bessette and Furgasso finally got a hand on Hopkins and took him into custody after a struggle.
At the crime scene, detectives reportedly noted that Hopkins cut a screen to the bedroom window and used something to pry the window open. It appeared he then ran out the back door of the house when he was spotted by police.
A search allegedly found Hopkins to be carrying two stolen rings in his pants pocket and a screwdriver which police believe was used to pry the window open.
The stolen property scattered across backyards included an iPod, two handbags, two cameras and two laptops, including one that was reported stolen out of the city of Warwick.
Police charged Hopkins with felony breaking and entering, felony receiving stolen goods, possession of burglary tools and resisting arrest.
He was arraigned on Friday in Kent County District Court and bail was set at $20,000 with surety.
Hopkins is being held at the Adult Correctional Institutions as a probation violator stemming from three separate incidents. In 2012, he was charged by Providence Police with intent to deliver narcotics. In 2008, he was convicted of Cranston charges of felony receiving stolen goods. He faced similar charges in North Kingstown in 2007.
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