A couple traveling with a one-year-old infant is facing charges in connection with a string of burglaries in York County.

Public Safety spokesman Steve McCausland says 28-year-old Shawn Swenson and his 25-year-old girlfriend, Abigale Hale, both of Buxton, were arrested Wednesday and charged for 17 home burglaries. State Police say one homeowner in Dayton found a man inside his home and another reported they were home when a man attempted to open their front door.

Swenson is charged with all 17 burglaries, while Hale received summonses on four burglary charges for allegedly driving her boyfriend to some of the houses. The charges came after Troopers learned that Swenson was trying to pawn suspected stolen jewelry in the Buxton area.

Trooper James MacDonald spotted Swenson's vehicle on the River Road in Buxton and stopped it. Hale was behind the wheel, Swenson was in the passenger seat, and the couple's one-year-old baby was in the back. Troopers searched the car and found jewelry that had been stolen earlier in the day from a burglary on the Pease Road in Buxton.

Swenson has admitted to his involvement in at least seventeen burglaries in Hollis, Dayton, Buxton, Scarborough, and Saco. Stolen were jewelry, tools, cash, and marijuana. Troopers are now checking with local pawn shops to try and locate some of the stolen property.

Police say the burglaries are drug-related to support Swenson's prescription drug habit. He's expected to make his first court appearance in April.

 
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