Tree-dwelling burglary suspect arrested in Pomona's Ganesha Hills

POMONA (CNS) - A 56-year-old man who lived in a tree house in Pomona's Ganesha Hills area has been arrested on suspicion of burglarizing a neighborhood home, police said Thursday.

Mark Duda was arrested Tuesday, according to the Pomona Police Department. A resident had reported on April 18 that he recognized Duda when he saw him leaving his residence with items from his home and garage, police said.

About 9 p.m. Tuesday, officers learned "that someone was living and hanging out in a very well-built and modern tree house in Ganesha Hills," according to a police statement. "The information was that the tree house was well-disguised in the hills just off McKinley Avenue."

The police department's air and K-9 units were deployed. The helicopter's heat-sensing FLIR system detected something in the heavy brush and trees in the area where officers were searching and a short time later, they found the tree house, which was "hidden deep into the hillside," police said.

"Numerous verbal commands were given and the suspect eventually climbed down..." and was arrested on suspicion of residential burglary, police said.

Duda was being held in lieu of $50,000 bail, according to sheriff's inmate records.

The tree house was fairly well-appointed, with a barbecue and lighting, police said.