Family dog helps police track down West Bloomfield home invasion suspect

Man charged with felony home invasion

WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. – A Westland man is in jail, facing charges in connection to a home invasion in West Bloomfield. 

West Bloomfield township police made the arrest seven days after the incident. The family dog, a Great Dane, helped them track down the suspect.

Jared Fortin, 32, of Westland was arraigned and charged with felony home invasion.

A woman, her daughter and a cancer-stricken Great Dane were asleep in the home when Fortin allegedly entered the home at 2 a.m. on Nov. 7 and demanded cash, a debit card and its PIN number.

What led to Fortin's arrest was an interesting interaction between Fortin and the Great Dane. The dog was familiar with Fortin and that led detectives to start checking with contractors who had done work at the home.

Fortin had allegedly used the debit card at five different area banks unsuccessfully before it worked. The images caught on bank cameras gave detectives a lead on the car the thief drove, which led to Fortin's Westland house.

West Bloomfield police said that Fortin confessed to the crime. They also said when they searched his Westland home they found some cash and other evidence linking him to the crime.


About the Authors:

Rod Meloni is an Emmy Award-winning Business Editor on Local 4 News and a Certified Financial Plannerâ„¢ Professional.

Kayla is a Web Producer for ClickOnDetroit. Before she joined the team in 2018 she worked at WILX in Lansing as a digital producer.