Maine man accused in crime spree overdoses after arrest in NH, police say
Tyler Cann faces at least a dozen charges
Tyler Cann faces at least a dozen charges
Tyler Cann faces at least a dozen charges
A Maine man is accused of a shocking crime spree in Barnstead over the weekend.
Richard Gardner, of Barnstead, couldn't believe what he found Sunday morning.
"So I go to my dump truck and I said, 'This isn't right. Somebody's sitting in my dump truck,'" Gardner recalled.
Police said 24-year-old Tyler Cann of Sanford, Maine, a fugitive from justice, was sleeping in Gardner's vehicle.
On Saturday night, he allegedly crashed in Alton and ditched the car he was driving in Barnstead.
He's then accused of a string of break-ins on Varney Road. That's where Gardner found him.
"So I open the door and I grabbed a hold of the guy and I shook him. He woke up and said, 'Oh no, I didn't do nothing wrong. I didn't steal anything.' I said, 'You did something wrong. You're in my truck,'" Gardner said.
Gardner said Cann ran off. Gardner chased him, but tripped and couldn't catch him.
In a desperate attempt to leave the area, police say Cann stole a kayak on Locke Lake, then tried to steal a motorcycle.
"It's just amazing that one person can actually cause this much chaos within a 12-hour range," said Officer Brian Crockwell of Barnstead police.
Thanks to tips from residents, Crockwell spotted Cann nearby and chased him into the woods and a swamp.
"He finally collapsed when I was right next to him. I was able to get him into custody," Crockwell said.
On the way to a hospital, police say Cann overdosed.
"He admitted that he took fentanyl a couple hours before we had taken him into custody," Crockwell said.
Investigators say Cann had an empty and full syringe with him, as well as knives and a backpack full of stolen electronics.
Right now, Cann is facing about a dozen charges, including five felonies, and there could be more.
As for Gardner, he's still in shock.
"I couldn't believe somebody was in my truck. I'm more disappointed in myself because I didn't catch him," he said.
Cann was arraigned Monday and is being held on $10,000 cash bail. He'll also face extradition back to Maine.