A Brampton man has been charged with hiding in the ceiling of two local pizza shops and waiting hours for closing time so he could steal cash and property.

The masked man was found hiding in the ceiling of the Pizza Nova on Clementine Drive around 1 a.m. Oct. 27. He was arrested by Peel Regional Police.

Police say this isn’t the first time this has happened.

Just a few days earlier, on Oct. 23, a man entered the washroom at a Pizza Nova on Hurontario Street near Bovaird Drive and climbed onto the sink, removed a ceiling tile and climbed into the ceiling where he waited until the store closed. He was caught on a security video camera at 1:19 a.m. wearing a mask, searching the store and attempting to take the security equipment.

No cash was found, but three cases of pop were stolen, said the store owner, who did not want to be identified. Theft and damages added up to $1,800, he said.

The owner said when he discovered the crime, he called police and warned the owner of the Clementine store, telling him what to look for in case the thief struck again.

Armed with that knowledge, an employee at the Clementine store was cleaning up before closing Oct. 27 when he noticed drywall-type dust on the floor of the washroom.

Police were called, and when officers shone their flashlights into the drop ceiling, they saw a masked man hiding. He was arrested and charged, said police.

Alec Ameri, 20, of Brampton, has been charged with one count of break and enter with intent to commit an indictable offence and one count of breaking out after committing an indictable offence. He is scheduled to appear in court Nov. 29.

Another Pizza Nova store, this one in Georgetown, was also broken into and cash stolen recently, but it is not yet known if the crimes are linked. The video surveillance equipment was removed in that break-in and Halton Regional Police are still investigating.