A California man was arrested Sunday covered in ash and soot after police said he was attempting to break into a home by climbing down the chimney and getting stuck.
Officers with Ridgecrest Police Department were dispatched to the house after a burglar alarm was triggered.
Police also received a call from a woman who wanted to report that her friend was stuck in a chimney and needing help.
Coincidently, the burglary alarm and request for help were at the same location.
When officers arrived, they found the suspect Keith Allen Schultz, 28 stuck inside of the chimney. Officers said they also found signs of forced entry into the residence and an open back door.
Police believe his accomplice broke into the home in an attempt to free him from the chimney but instead triggered the home alarm.
The accomplice fled the scene and remains at large.
Schultz was eventually freed from the chimney by Kern County firefighters and taken into custody. He faces first-degree burglary charges.
