The man authorities say was caught on camera trying to break into apartments of Merrimack College students faced a judge Wednesday in Lawrence, Massachusetts.
The Essex County District Attorney's Office said 26-year-old Adam Auditore of Medford broke into three apartments at Royal Crest Estates in North Andover Monday, and tried to get into several others.
"One female victim stated she woke up to an unknown male standing over her in her apartment," Assistant District Attorney Alyssa Thibault said.
Prosecutors said this is not the first time Auditore has been accused of targeting housing of college students. He was charged with breaking into a woman's residence at Boston College in 2017. The case was continued without a finding, but they are worried there is a pattern.
Get Boston local news, weather forecasts, lifestyle and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Boston’s newsletters.
"He is choosing vulnerable victims each time," Thiault said. "These are victims who may be living away from home for the first time in their lives for college."
Auditore's history is especially concerning to Bridgette Nocella, a junior at Merrimack College. She said she lives in one of the apartments he broke into Monday.
"He didn't touch any of us. He didn't take anything. So it's just kind of weird he was messing with our stuff," Nocella said.
She said she is grateful to the students who installed their own Ring doorbell cameras, which captured the footage that led to his arrest.
More Massachusetts news
"We're definitely relieved, but it is still scary knowing how easy it was for him to get into girls' apartments," Nocella said.
Auditore was released on his own personal recognizance with a GPS monitoring bracelet. He is not allowed anywhere near the apartments and was ordered to undergo a mental health evaluation at his attorney's request.
"It's just kind of hard to sleep at night not knowing what he wanted to do," Nocella said.
