Dumbass of the month: Man held up at gunpoint while trying to break open donation box he'd allegedly stolen from a mosque

UPDATE: Police report they found out about Ortiz getting robbed because he reported it to them.

Methuen Police report arresting a man they say broke into a local mosque and made off with computers and other electronics - and the two men they say robbed him at gunpoint when they noticed him trying to crack open the donation box in a parking lot.

William Ortiz, 38, of Methuen, was charged with breaking and entering in the nighttime and larceny of property worth more than $250:

On Friday, June 3, police responded to The Selimiye Mosque, located on Oakland Avenue for a reported breaking and entering. Speaking with the imam, detectives learned that someone had broken in either late Thursday evening or early Friday morning and stolen several items, including the donation box, a computer, a laptop, a network router and a video camera.

Later that day, in broad daylight, detectives responded to an address on Railroad Street after a reported armed robbery. Detectives learned that two men had robbed Ortiz after watching him in the parking lot try to pull money out of a large metal box using a coat hanger.

After an interview with Ortiz, he was arrested and police were able to recover the stolen property and return it to the mosque.

Police arrested two Lawrence residents on a variety of charges related to their alleged robbery and the 54 grams of heroin police say they found in their house.

Innocent, etc.