Burglar calls Vancouver police for help after getting stuck on roof

Talk about swallowing your pride.

A would-be cat burglar had to call the Vancouver Police Department for help after he got stuck on the roof of a home he was trying to break into.

The 51-year-old man tried to enter a home at Matthews Avenue and Cypress Street through the skylight at 1 am on Sunday morning when he slid down the roof and got stuck. When he realized he wouldn’t make it to the ground 25 feet below, he made a call to 9-1-1 asking for help.

The fire department had to get the man off the roof, after which he was taken into custody without incident. The man has a long record of break-ins, says the VPD.

“Even a skylight can be an attractive invitation to an agile cat burglar,” says VPD Staff Sergeant Randy Fincham in a release. “This cat wisely chose to save one of his nine lives and called 9-1-1 for help.”