Arizona man charged in Newport Beach home vandalism and burglary attempts

An Arizona man has been charged in connection with a series of home vandalism and burglary incidents in Newport Beach’s Dover Shores neighborhood last week.

The Orange County district attorney’s office charged Steven Walter Conner Ohlau, 35, of Lakeside, Ariz., with four counts of felony vandalism, one count of felony burglary and one count of possession of burglary tools, a misdemeanor.

Ohlau pleaded not guilty to all charges Monday in Orange County Superior Court. He was released from Orange County Jail on bond Tuesday, according to jail records.

Newport Beach police arrested Ohlau on March 29. That night, police received a report that the front door of a home in the 800 block of Muirfield Drive was forced open between 7 and 10 p.m. and a thief made off with watches and jewelry.

At 11:17 p.m., police said, an officer patrolling the Dover Shores area saw Ohlau driving an SUV matching the description of one seen in four incidents earlier in the week. The vehicle rolled through a stop sign at Mariners and Dover drives, police said.

The officer pulled over the vehicle and searched it, finding burglary tools and jewelry, police said.

In the earlier incidents, four Dover Shores residents reported that someone had tried to burglarize their homes late March 27 and early March 28.

In each case, a man tried to force open the front door of the residence, possibly by kicking it, police said.

No property was taken in any of those incidents. Residents reported seeing an SUV near their homes at the time of the crimes.

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