Man arrested in car theft at Lido Isle home

Police on Sunday arrested a Fullerton man suspected of sneaking into a Newport Beach house and taking a car key from the kitchen counter so he could steal a Toyota Camry parked on the street.

Newport Beach police allege that Keith Richard Freeman, 32, used a basement window to get into the Lido Isle home in the 500 block of Via Lido Nord around 5 a.m. Jan. 31 while the residents were sleeping upstairs.

Other than the car key, nothing was taken from inside, police said.

Police received a tip around 12:30 p.m. Sunday that the stolen Camry was again seen near the house.

Officers found Freeman driving the car and, after interviewing him, arrested him on suspicion of vehicle theft, according to the Newport Beach Police Department. Detectives also will ask prosecutors to pursue a burglary charge, police said.

Except for an iPhone, investigators recovered everything that was in the Camry when it was stolen, police said.

Freeman is being held in Orange County Jail without bail, according to police.

— Jeremiah Dobruck

Twitter: @jeremiahdobruck