Teacher Dials 911 As Man Breaks Into Students’ Home During Online Class, Suspect Arrested

A man broke into a home in California while two teenagers were attending an online class. Their teacher jumped into action and called 911. The man was arrested Saturday.

The incident happened on Oct. 15 when the remote-learning class was about to finish. Their teacher, Jennifer Peterson, called the police after hearing her students making desperate pleas for help.

The Galt Police Department said in a statement that the break-in suspect, identified as Louis Dulay, 55, was arrested on charges of burglary, child endangerment, loitering on private property with the intent to commit a crime and tampering with a vehicle.

Petersen told CBS Sacramento that she would stay online until all students log off. She sensed something was amiss as the teens didn't sign off after the class. "I was just watching their faces and I can see their faces go from concern to panic," Petersen said.

The teens started to scream in fear when they saw the home intruder. "They kept saying help us, help us and calling out to me," Petersen told the outlet. The man reportedly forced his way inside through the front side window and was "running through the house". He told them he wasn't intending to steal or break anything before he ran out of the back door.

Petersen, who was taking the remote learning class from Elk Grove, about 13 miles away from Galt, stayed online until officers arrived. "I was very much panicking inside," Petersen said.

The teens' mother, Reyna Luna, who wasn't at home when the incident took place, told the outlet that she saw cops surrounding the neighborhood when she returned. She called Petersen a hero for helping her children.

The teacher said her parental instincts drove her to do so. "Any teacher would have done that and as a mother," Petersen told CBS Sacramento.

Dulay was being held at the Sacramento County Main Jail. He told police some people carrying rifles were chasing him.

No one was hurt in the incident.