The man was identified as Richard Joseph McEwan, 26, of New Jersey, who police said broke into Swift's Watch Hill home Friday evening and was caught inside a short time later, according to The Westerly Sun.
"A pair of orange shoes were found at the doorway where he broke in. When officers asked him why he wasn't wearing any, he told them, 'I was always taught that when you go into someone's home, you have to take your shoes off,'" Westerly police Chief Shawn Lacey told the newspaper.
“He said he did it because it was polite,” Lacey said.
McEwan drove to the area Friday and parked near Swift's home, police said. He walked to the house and jumped the fence, then broke a glass door to get into the home before taking his shoes off before and roaming around inside, the Sun reported.
Man breaks into Taylor Swift’s home, takes off shoes to be polite, police say: 26-year-old Richard Joseph McEwan said he was always taught to take his shoes off when entering someone's home to be polite, according to police. https://t.co/p7YcSwwEo5 pic.twitter.com/87d6lsOmmH
— Marcus Evans ⚛️ 🔬 🔭 (@MarcuswevansSr) September 4, 2019
He was apprehended without incident a short time later when police responded to the scene.
McEwan, who was released from jail on a $5,000 bond, is charged with breaking and entering and willful trespassing, according to The Associated Press.
Swift was not home at the time of the break-in.
Other people have been arrested near Swift’s home in the past, but police said this was the first time a trespasser has made it inside.
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