Cops: Teacher-turned-burglar was suicidal

Police in New Jersey may have saved Michael Innaurato's life by arresting him today for a series of Delaware County burglaries he allegedly committed after abruptly resigning from his teaching position last year.

Innaurato, 30, was pulled over in Evesham Township after the automated license-plate reader mounted on a police cruiser notified the officer that Innaurato was wanted for burglary in Pennsylvania. Detective Lt. Scott Willoughby in Ridley Township, where Innaurato allegedly committed three burglaries, said Innaurato was found with his father's stolen .45-caliber handgun, loaded and cocked.

"He told the police officer he was going to commit suicide if they didn't get him right out of the car," Willoughby said. "That's how bad his mental status is."

Innaurato, who police believe is responsible for at least six recent burglaries in Ridley Township, Rutledge, Aston and Haverford, may be addicted to drugs and gambling, police said. Last spring, he quit his job as a fourth-grade teacher at Amosland Elementary School in Ridley Township.