Two charged with burglary in NW Indiana

Two northwest Indiana men have been charged with burglary after police say they tried to break into a house Wednesday near Porter Township, Ind.

Officers responded to a call of an attempted burglary at 12:40 p.m. at a house in the 700 W block of County Road 450 South in rural Porter Township, according to a statement from the Porter County sheriff’s office.

The homeowner told investigators that she saw a white Chevrolet van park in front of her house and someone inside came and knocked on the front door, sheriff’s police said. Soon after, the doorbell ran at her back door and she heard “someone using their body to force into the house.”

By the time the men got into the house, the homeowner had a firearm and her phone, police said. She threatened the two suspects, who ran out of the house and drove away in the van.

Police found 28-year-old Christopher Bartosik and Nedal Hamed, 34, near the disabled van at 400 S. County Line Road, and took the two into custody.

Each Lake County, Ind., man was charged with one count of Level 4 Burglary, police said. Hamed also had a warrant out for his arrest for Burglary in Lake County.