ORLANDO, Fla. – The people forced out of the Rialto Apartments in Dr. Phillips were already dealing with weeks of uncertainty and trying to get their belongings out. Now, deputies say some of what they had to leave behind may have been targeted, too.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office says Israel Jacobowitz was arrested after deputies say he got inside the condemned building and stole from multiple apartments.
According to an arrest affidavit, a building employee told deputies Jacobowitz went inside around 11 p.m. Wednesday and was still there Thursday morning.
[WATCH: Engineers find large gap under Rialto Apartments slab]
Deputies say he was seen on camera trying doors, taking a Ring camera off one apartment, and walking around with stolen property in a white plastic bag.
Investigators also say they recovered four bank cards belonging to someone who lived in the building, along with tools taken from a maintenance worker.
The arrest adds another twist to a situation that has already upended life for the people who live there.
The Rialto building was evacuated on March 19 after people reported popping sounds, cracking, and doors jamming shut. More than 350 people were displaced. Since then, people have only been allowed back in to get their belongings out while engineers continue to investigate what caused the structural damage.
[WATCH: Rialto residents pushed out, now push to sue]
In a preliminary findings letter reported by News 6 earlier this month, engineers said they found a large gap beneath part of the slab and that temporary shoring was needed. The building was considered safe for worker access, but not safe for people to live in.
According to the affidavit, the only people who were supposed to be inside were authorized people moving belongings out.
Jacobowitz now faces charges including burglary, attempted burglary, grand theft, possession of burglary tools, petit theft of credit cards, and trespass in a condemned building.
News 6 is still working to hear from the people who had to leave the building and leave so much behind.