Laguna Hills Burglary Suspect Arrested in San Clemente

Responding to a telephone tip received Monday, sheriff's deputies arrested a man in San Clemente on suspicion of burglarizing a Laguna Hills home last week.

Citizens in the Los Molinos district of San Clemente may have been startled Monday around 12:30 p.m. as an Orange County Sheriff's deputy brandished a tactical rifle.

The action came in response to a call from the Best Western Casablanca Inn at Los Molinos and El Camino Real, where someone said he recognized Brian Michael Vaught, 27, as the man who allegedly burglarized his home on Maplewood Drive in Laguna Hills late Thursday afternoon, according to reports.

Sheriff's spokeswoman Carrie Braun said the deputy was armed with a rifle because the suspect was reportedly toting some kind of handgun.

The burglary report from Laguna Hills also indicated the suspect had an unknown type of handgun as he exited the home carrying a black bag and escaped in a blue Volkswagen Jetta, according to the dispatch log.

The call from the hotel ultimately did not yield results, but deputies later caught up to Vaught and arrested him off Camino De Estrella, according to dispatch reports.

Vaught remained in jail in Orange County's Theo Lacy facility as of Wednesday on $20,000 bond, according to court records.