Handyman breaks into historic Newnan home with bottle of wine, police say

NEWNAN, Ga. - A Newnan family told police they woke up before sunrise on January 8 to a loud noise coming from downstairs. It was what they saw after hearing footsteps coming up the staircase that shocked them.

Anthony Mark Chase, 54, was charged with burglary and criminal damage to property.

The body camera video released by police shows officers arriving at the home just as the homeowner pushed Chase out the broken front door. The video shows a bottle of white wine still in his hand.

Anthony Mark Chase, seen in body camera video exiting a historic Newnan home, is charged with breaking in with bottle of wine during the early morning hours of Jan. 8, 2024. (Newnan Police Department)

The homeowner told officers he recognized Chase after he woke them up just after 5 a.m., stumbling up the staircase with a bottle of wine.

"The individual had previously done some work in the home," said Det. Dalton Taylor of the Newnan Police Department.

Police say the homeowner left his bedroom and met wine-carrying Chase at the top of the staircase and ordered him to immediately leave.

Newnan police say they are still baffled why Anthony Mark Chase broke into a historic home with a bottle wine during the early morning hours of Jan. 8, 2024. (Newnan Police Department)

He also instantly recognized him as a handyman who had done work in the home.

Why he was back, in the middle of the night, BYOB, all is still a mystery.

Anthony Mark Chase (Coweta County Sheriff's Office)

Chase was accused of breaking the glass out of the front door of the historic Newnan home.

The damage is estimated at over $1,000.