KC police find alleged burglar hiding in closet in Brookside home

A 34-year-old Kansas City man has been charged with burglary after police found him in the closet of a Brookside home Wednesday where officers suspected a break-in had occurred.

Jackson County prosecutors on Thursday charged Raymond C. Hoblia with burglary, attempted burglary and unlawful possession of a firearm. Police said they found an unloaded handgun in a backpack allegedly belonging to Hoblia.

According to court documents, a resident in the 400 block of West 59th Terrace called police about 9 a.m. Wednesday after seeing a man try to pry open a sliding door at the resident’s house.

The man walked away, but police working undercover nearby responded to the call and followed the man to a nearby house on Huntington Road, where the officers suspected the man broke in through a window. Police surrounded the house and searched it, eventually finding Hoblia in a bedroom closet.

Hoblia was taken to a hospital for treatment of a dog bite. In a bedroom in the home, police found drawers open and a pile of valuables dumped on a bed.

Police searched a backpack that they thought belonged to Hoblia and found a 9 mm handgun that had been reported stolen in Lee’s Summit on Tuesday.

Hoblia has felony convictions for burglary, forgery and robbery, making it illegal for him to have a firearm.

According to court documents, Hoblia said the backpack belonged to him but denied knowing there was a gun in it.

Prosecutors have requested a $50,000 bond.

This story was originally published September 22, 2016 at 4:16 PM with the headline "KC police find alleged burglar hiding in closet in Brookside home."