CONCORD - A search by local and state police to locate a man who was caught rummaging through a homeowner's car in his garage was called off late Wednesday morning, Lt. Timothy O'Malley said.

Concord police, state police, state police dogs and the state police helicopter all searched for the suspect after light broke in the wooded area of Iron Works Road.

"We set up a perimeter hoping to catch him when the sun came out," O'Malley said, "but he made it out through the woods and we stopped the search. We estimate he had been there two to three hours before that."

O'Malley described the suspect as a scruffy-looking man, approximately 20 to 30 years old, 5-foot-7, wearing a dark, hooded sweatshirt.

A homeowner found a man rummaging through his car in the garage between 5:20 and 5:30 a.m., O'Malley said, which led to a confrontation.

The suspect fled on foot, leaving behind $92 in change and some flashlights.

"What he left behind leads us to believe that he'd probably been going through other cars in the area," O'Malley said. "We suspect it was not his first stop."

No injuries were reported during the confrontation. O'Malley said the homeowner had been up, preparing to go to work and opened the garage door and found the suspect inside his car. Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Concord Police Department at 225-8600.

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