A sheriff's deputy caught a burglar in the act this week, breaking into his own home. In fact, the officer and the intruder recognized each other.

A sheriff's deputy caught a burglar in the act this week, breaking into his own home. In fact, the officer and the intruder recognized each other.

Investigators say right in the middle of the day, a convicted felon targeted the wrong place for a crime: a house on W. Jackson St. in Muncie that belongs to Delaware County Reserve Deputy Mark Conatser.

"He did pick the wrong house," Conatser said.

Conatser was working his other job Wednesday, when he forgot his wallet at lunch, went back home to get it, and ended up catching an intruder.

"There was a van in the driveway. Van was running and no one was inside," Conatser explained. "I noticed my front door was open and the windows were busted out of it. So obviously means there's people in the house. I opened my outer screen door, announced my presence and it ended up being someone I knew."

He says it was guy he recognized from high school, 34-year-old Darrell McCallum. Conatser says when he yelled for him to get out, McCallum recognized him, too.

"He put his hands up and said, 'Mark I didn't steal anything. And I said, to myself, I'm thinking, 'of course you didn't because I just stopped you in the act and if I hadn't come home, probably be wiped out'," Conatser said.

The deputy chased McCallum and called 911. Minutes later, officers, including a K-9 officer, were after the intruder. It was the dog's first real call on his final day of training.

Investigators say the chase last a couple blocks and the K9 caught McCallum's scent. They say McCallum had made another bad decision in his choice of hiding place.

"He did pick the wrong hiding spot, which I take a little bit of pleasure in," Conatser said. "He was hiding in the pickup truck bed of what happened to be a Muncie city cop's house."

Investigators say McCallum admitted to the crime, once he was caught by that K-9 in the police officer's truck bed. He said he broke into the home because of his addiction to heroin.

"That drives people to do things that they shouldn't do," Conatser said.