"In his opening statement, Alam said he had moved to Richmond after being lost in Washington, D.C. He claimed that after being abruptly evicted, he began looking for an Airbnb but had no phone service, and mistakenly entered the Smith family's home instead. The first person to discover Alam was the family's son, a barber who had just finished work and gotten out of the shower. He found personal items spread across the guest-room bed with Alam standing there. When asked why he was in the house, Alam said he was with Xfinity to fix the Wi-Fi."
"The Smith family testified that they were Verizon customers, not Xfinity. Once they realized Alam wasn't who he claimed, they persuaded him to leave. Later that night, they discovered valuables missing, including a tablet and a diamond necklace, along with a broken window. A neighbor told the family he'd seen Alam taking items from outside that same window. That evening, Henrico Police located Alam less than two miles away. He never mentioned an Airbnb but told officers he was lost trying to take a train back to Washington, D.C."
"During cross-examination, Alam suggested to the Smith family that they weren't being truthful about the burglary even asking the father whether he was sure he'd closed the door every time he went outside that day. At one point, Alam asked Officer Minter whether the items found on him included the family's missing tablet or necklace. When Minter began listing all the recovered objects, Alam interrupted: "Objection. Stop talking.""
Zach Alam moved to Richmond after becoming disoriented in Washington, D.C., and claimed eviction forced him to look for an Airbnb without phone service, leading him to enter the Smith family's home by mistake. The family's son discovered Alam standing in the guest room among displaced personal items; Alam told them he was with Xfinity to fix Wi‑Fi. The family, who used Verizon, later found a broken window and missing valuables including a tablet and a diamond necklace. A neighbor reported seeing Alam removing items, and Henrico police located him less than two miles away. Alam later suggested the family was untruthful and interrupted an officer during testimony.
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