Just hours after police asked if the same man authorities say stole from offices in Fort Washington could also be responsible for recent thefts in South Whitehall Township, the alleged "Office Creeper" was in police custody.
Gerald Broadwater, 61, was arrested early Thursday by U.S. Marshals in Morris County, N.J., according to law enforcement authorities in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
Broadwater was being held Thursday in Morris County, according to prosecutor Robert Bianchi.
The arrest comes soon after a report surfaced that Broadwater, who is wanted for office thefts in Fort Washington last month, was being investigated for similar thefts in the Allentown-Bethlehem area.
Bethlehem Police had earlier issued a release for the public to be on the lookout for Broadwater, though they didn't link him to any specific area crimes.
Police in South Whitehall Township were investigating suspicious incidents at office buildings along Cedar Crest Boulevard. The incidents date back to Jan. 31, according to LehighValleyLive.com.
There were no confirmed sightings of Broadwater in South Whitehall, police said.
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An arrest warrant was issued previously for Broadwater after stolen items were found in the car he abandoned following the Fort Washington thefts.
Broadwater allegedly stole items, including laptops, from 10 Fort Washington office buildings last month -- including one heist that netted about $30,000 worth of cash, according to Upper Dublin Township Police.
He is so quiet and comfortable during the alleged thefts that he has become known as the “Office Creeper,” officials said.
"When we did some research into him we found out that he's wanted in various states and he has nicknames as being a laptop burglar," Upper Dublin Police Det. Michael Gommer said.
His reputation is that he casually hangs out in office parks -- hiding in plain sight -- and targets computers and cash, according to authorities.
Broadwater, who also goes by the first name “Frank,” was first implicated of stealing laptops from the Fort Washington Office Park on Jan. 11, according to Patch.com.
After that incident, police say they warned local businesses to be on the lookout for the suspect and they actually stopped Broadwater on Jan. 19 but after handing over an ID for "Frank Broadwater," the suspect ran off on foot, according to cops.
He showed up a few hours later at a Fort Washington hotel but since then, the so-called "Office Creeper" -- implicated in burglaries in New Jersey, North Carolina and Georgia (as documented by NBC affiliate WXIA-TV) -- was on the loose.
