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MESA, Ariz. — Two missionaries for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints caught a burglar at their neighbor's house in the Phoenix area Tuesday night as they returned home from proselyting.
The two missionaries were talking outside their home in Mesa at about 8 p.m. when they saw a man leave their neighbor's house with laptops and jewelry.
"We're like, hey we know the people who live here and you don't live here, and he started to get really nervous," Elder Corey Brown told KSAZ-TV.
The men called 911 as they watched the man put the items in a car being driven by a woman. They said their standard missionary attire — white button-down shirts, black suit jackets and ties — may have confused the woman.
"She's like, 'I don't want to get in trouble or anything can I leave?' " Brown said.
Police arrived and arrested the woman, Cynthia Espinoza-Elizalde. The man they had seen got away, but the stolen items were located and returned to the homeowner.
The couple are believed to have been involved in at least one other attempted burglary. The man has not been identified.
