A Montpelier man hid inside a Berlin department store at closing Sunday March 19 and was removing security devices from merchandise in the men’s room when police caught him, Berlin police say. 

At about 9:51 pm, the Berlin Police responded to the Kohl’s Department Store for a report of a burglary alarm activation. Officers were advised by Kohl’s security monitoring of one man inside the store who was seen on security video, selecting merchandise. 

Upon entering the store officers found Derrick R. Patterson, 40, of Montpelier inside the men’s room. Patterson had apparently hidden inside the store at closing and then selected about $500 worth of merchandise. He was in the process of removing security devices from the merchandise he had selected. 

Patterson was taken into custody without incident. Patterson was lodged at Barre City Police Department for lack of bail and he will be arraigned on Burglary, Larceny and Possession of Burglary Tools charges in Washington District Court on March 20 at 12:30 pm.