Preliminary hearing scheduled for Logan man accused of Christmas Eve burglary

James Merritt, 32, arrested December 24, 2015, on suspicion of burglary, theft and assault.

LOGAN — A preliminary hearing date has been set for 32-year-old James D. Merritt. The Logan man is suspected of breaking into a home early on the morning of Christmas Eve and getting into a fight with the homeowner.

Merritt appeared in 1st District Court Tuesday morning while a judge scheduled the hearing for January 20. He faces 23 charges including burglary and theft, both second and third-degree felonies along with other misdemeanors. He is suspected in a string of burglaries that began September 1 and continued until December 24.

Police arrested Merritt after a homeowner in North Logan called police to report a man, wearing a mask, in his garage. The two men reportedly got into an altercation and the suspect fled the scene. The homeowner was armed and fired into the ground as the suspect left.

The homeowner told police, the suspect got into a Jeep and hit a mailbox, damaging the vehicle, as he drove away.

Officers with the Logan City Police Department later located a vehicle matching the Jeep’s description, in the parking lot of a department store. They questioned Merritt and later arrested him.

He is being held in the Cache County Jail without bail.

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