Cambridge man who seems to like breaking into Charles Street stores caught red-brick handed last night, police say

Boston Police report officers tracking a trail of break-ins and smashed store windows along on Charles Street last night found James Lynn Schaff, 57, of Cambridge, brick in hand, before he could smash what would have been at least his second window of the night.

His arrest comes a little more than a month after a Boston Municipal Court judge gave him a 2 1/2-year jail sentence for breaking into a Charles Street store last August, but then suspended it for a year, to give him a chance to prove he could stay out of trouble.

Police, who had already been tracking recent break-ins along Charles Street, responded shortly before 11:30 p.m. to 103 Charles St., where a witness spotted somebody trying to kick in a store window, but leaving before he succeeded. Not long after, police responded to 51 Charles St. - the same address Schaff broke into last year - on a report of a smashed window. Police say the smashed window - and a loose brick on the steps - were at a jewelry store next door at 53 Charles Street.

Continuing their search, officers noticed the slightly ajar front door of a nearby business at 15 Charles St. Upon investigation, they heard noises coming from inside. Upon entering, they discovered Schaff holding a brick, which he promptly dropped upon seeing the officers. Schaff was then arrested, and a search revealed several stolen jewelry items in his possession.

Police say they charged Schaff with, among other things, breaking and entering in the nighttime, destruction of property and being a common and notorious thief. He was scheduled for arraignment in Boston Municipal Court today.

Schaff is listed as a Level 2 sex offender based on a 1987 conviction for aggravated rape.

Innocent, etc.