A Bethesda man who recorded the license plate number of a man he saw trying to break into his house is being credited with helping to catch the would-be burglar.

William Martin Westray, 46, of the 5000 block of Jay Street, was released from the Montgomery County Detention Center Sunday afternoon after posting a $10,000 bond, according to a statement from Montgomery County police. Westray was charged with two counts each of attempted first-degree burglary and possession of burglary tools, police said.

Police believe Westray was responsible for two attempted burglaries, but detectives are looking into whether he may be involved in other crimes, police said.

The first incident took place at 1 p.m. Jan. 3, when a woman heard someone breaking a basement window at her house in the 7800 block of Overhill Road in Bethesda. No one had entered the house, but the woman said she had seen a white, older model vehicle leaving her driveway after she yelled and interrupted the burglary, police said.

The second victim gave police the vehicle’s license plate number after he returned to his home in the 7000 block of River Road in Bethesda at 2 p.m. and saw a man trying to turn the handle of his basement door. The homeowner yelled at the man and saw him get in a white, older model vehicle parked in a neighbor’s driveway, police said. The homeowner wrote down the plate as the vehicle sped away.

A vehicle with a similar tag number and description to the one linked to Westray has been listed in burglary lookouts from Frederick and Howard counties, according to an email sent to Bethesda residents by county police on a Western Montgomery County Citizens Advisory Board list last week.

No attorney information was listed for Westray as of Tuesday afternoon in an online search of court records.

jarias@gazette.net