A Lansdale man has been charged with felony burglary and other offenses for allegedly breaking into the former Frederick’s Flowers and stealing copper piping.
James Angelo Campitelli, 43, of the 50th block of East Main Street, Lansdale, was charged Tuesday with additional offenses of felony conspiracy to commit burglary, felony criminal trespassing and an associated conspiracy charge, and misdemeanor counts of possessing an instrument of crime, criminal mischief and a related conspiracy charge, attempted theft, possession of a controlled substance, and use/possession of drug paraphernalia, according to charging documents.
On Tuesday, at 8:51 a.m., police were called to a burglary in progress at 3523 Bethlehem Pike, in which Campitelli allegedly broke into the building. The caller, a property manager for parcel owner St. Luke’s University Health Care Network, reported hammering coming from inside the building, police said.
The property manager arrived at the site Tuesday morning and found the lock broken off the door, police said.
As police approached the building, Campitelli walked out from behind it, police said. A search of Campitelli revealed three screwdrivers, a wrench and a head lamp, per the affidavit. He also had a black plastic sheath from a Milwaukee-brand fixed-blade knife on his left hip area, but no weapon, police said.
Police said a backpack he was carrying contained an orange pill bottle with multiple small yellow pills, one purple tube with an orange-capped needle, a purple tube with suspected marijuana, a small jar with a white residue inside, and multiple electrical items.
A search of the building was done and multiple power tools and pieces of copper wire were found, police said. A red-handled Milwaukee knife was found outside of a garage door of one of the outbuildings on the property, police said.
Police said Campitelli admitted to being in the building, along with a co-conspirator, in order to remove copper wire from conduits, along with other valuable metals, that they planned to sell at scrap yards.
He told police he lost his knife outside one of the buildings while they were searching buildings to determine where the underground electric cables led.
Campitelli was jailed on 10% of $1,000 cash bail and a preliminary hearing is set for Jan. 14 at 1:15 p.m. before Magisterial District Judge Regina Armitage.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
