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Barefoot man arrested after breaking into Taylor Swift’s house

In this Aug. 26, 2019 file photo, Taylor Swift arrives at the MTV Video Music Awards in Newark, N.J. Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File

Over the past few years, Taylor Swift has dealt with a number of unexpected home invasions, and unfortunately for the pop star, it just happened again.

As reported by the Westerly Sun, last Friday afternoon, the Westerly Police Department (WPD) responded to a witness report that somebody had broken into the 29-year-old’s Rhode Island beachfront mansion.

Local authorities showed up and found 26-year-old Richard Joseph McEwan inside the Wildest Dreams singer’s home, police say.

Possibly the most peculiar part? He was reportedly found barefoot as he wanted “to be polite.”

This booking photo, released by the Westerly Police Department in Rhode Island, shows Richard Joseph McEwan, of Milford, N.J., arrested on Aug. 30, 2019, and charged with breaking into Taylor Swift’s oceanfront house in Westerly. Westerly Police Department via AP

McEwan was charged with breaking and entering as well as willful trespassing, according to the Associated Press.

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In an interview with the Westerly Sun, Chief Shawn Lacey of the WPD said: “This was an unusual case in the sense that we found him inside the house.”

“We’ve dealt with a number of complaints at the home since it was purchased (by Swift),” he continued, “but this is the first I can recall of someone actually making it into the house.”

Lacey said the first thing his team found at the home was “a pair of orange shoes at the doorway.”

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When asked about the mysterious and careful removal of his shoes, McEwan supposedly told the police, “‘I was always taught that when you go into someone’s home, you have to take your shoes off.'”

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McEwan was later released by the WPD on a US$5,000 bond. He is due in Washington County Superior Court for a felony screening.

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In just one of many other cases, a masked man was arrested on suspicion last year after hanging around Swift’s Californian home. He was identified as Julius Sandrock. He was caught with a knife and rope in his car. As a result, the singer filed a restraining order against him.

In response to this, and ahead of her 30th birthday this December, Swift wrote and published an exclusive article for Elle earlier this year called, 30 Things I Learned Before Turning 30. It expanded on her unfortunate history with stalkers and break-in attempts.

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“Websites and tabloids have taken it upon themselves to post every home address I’ve ever had online,” Swift wrote in Elle. “You get enough stalkers trying to break into your house and you kind of start prepping for bad things.”

Furthermore, Swift revealed that she now carries QuikClot at all times — a military-grade brand of bandages for protection.

“My fear of violence has continued into my personal life,” she continued, adding that the product was specifically for “gunshots or stab wounds.”

READ MORE: Taylor Swift’s stalker arrested for breaking into singer’s NYC home for third time

Around the same time that Sandrock was charged, another man, Roger Alvarado, was found sleeping in Swift’s bed in Swift’s Soho townhouse by local authorities. He also allegedly used her shower.

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Unfortunately, that wasn’t the first report of a break-in attempt by Alvarado, 23. The obsessed fan was charged last February with breaking through the front door of Swift’s US$18-million property with a shovel.

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Once more, he was charged in March for climbing a ladder and smashing a glass door in order to enter into the Me! singer’s New York home. According to The Associated Press, he is now facing charges of stalking and burglary.

Fortunately for Swift, once again, she was not home at the time of any of these reported break-ins.

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Despite the ongoing troubles and threats in her life, Swift has vowed to stay positive. She wrote, “Every day, I try to remind myself of the good in the world, the love I’ve witnessed and the faith I have in humanity.”

“We have to live bravely in order to truly feel alive,” she continued, “and that means not being ruled by our greatest fears.”

WATCH: Official music video for Taylor Swift’s ‘Lover’

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After months of promotion and teasing her fans with brand new smash-hit singles on occasion, Swift released her seventh studio album, Lover, last month.

The 18-track record is the 29-year-old pop star’s first since 2017’s Reputation and clocks in at just over one hour. It has already received critical acclaim.

adam.wallis@globalnews.ca

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