ROCKLAND, Maine — Last summer, then-15-year-old Matthew Swanson, of Glenburn, foiled a home burglary, but still managed to make it home in time for soccer practice.
On Monday afternoon — which happened to be Swanson’s birthday — Knox County Sheriff Donna Dennison recognized the Bangor Christian School sophomore for his good observational skills and his “clear concern for others.”
“[He] went above and beyond what a normal citizen will do,” Dennison said at a small ceremony at the Knox County Sheriff’s Office. “He really went out of his way.”
Matthew was visiting relatives in Warren on June 30, when he noticed around noontime a man “leaning into a window” of a neighboring home. When the man walked out carrying a box, the teenager decided it didn’t seem right and drew a sketch of the vehicle and took down the license plate number along with other notes about the possible crime in progress.
He left that information for his relatives to give to the police, if they thought it would be useful, then left for his soccer practice.
It was useful, officials stressed at the ceremony. Too often those who observe shady behavior aren’t sure whether they should bother police, or else are worried about the repercussions.
“It’s usually difficult to get citizens to cooperate,” said acting Sgt. Michael Sprague. “And the ones that do cooperate, their info is really limited.”
However, Matthew’s information was so complete that the police were able to solve the crime in just two days.
Home burglary cases can often take months or even years to break and sometimes are not solved at all, Sprague said.
Thanks to the teen, two men were arrested on a felony charge of burglary for taking an entertainment system from the Warren home. They apparently had pawned the system at a local shop for $12. In the end the system was returned to the owner, Dennison said.
One of the burglars was sentenced to three years in jail, with all but six months suspended, and the other was fined $500 and sentenced to 364 days in jail with all but 30 days suspended.
Although the adults in the room seemed to be pretty impressed with Matthew, he took his endeavor with a grain of salt as he politely accepted a certificate, a birthday present and a Knox County Sheriff’s Office challenge medal from the sheriff.
“He was just sort of nonchalant,” Sprague said. “I’m hoping that Matt’s recognition will be an inspiration to others [to share information].”
His mother, Lisa Swanson, of Glenburn, said she had kept the recognition ceremony a secret from Matthew until last night.
“I’m very proud of him,” she said. “And I’m proud that he did the right thing just because it was the right thing.”
And it seems very possible that Matthew will have future opportunities to continue keeping an eye on his neighborhood. When asked what his career goals are, the quiet teen smiled and said, “I was either thinking about engineering — or maybe law enforcement.”