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About a month ago, Neil Robertson turned away a door-to-door salesman offering anti-theft protection services.

"I told him I have my own security system," Robertson said, referring to the video surveillance equipment he has set up in his Soldotna home.

But, after two men allegedly burglarized Robertson's Pioneer Drive house on July 25, the Soldotna resident was second-guessing his previous decision.

"Certainly a monthly service might have paid for itself," Robertson said Monday while standing amidst broken glass in his living room.

Robertson works two weeks on, two weeks off on the North Slope and was toward the end of his work shift when he received a phone call from Alaska State Troopers.

"(The trooper) said anything that could be smashed has been smashed," Robertson recalled.

Neighbors phoned in the burglary as it was occurring around 9:15 p.m. on Sunday. Three troopers responded and found two men running away from Robertson's home. Eventually, the troopers stopped Jacob D. Cosselman, 22, of Michigan; and Thimothy I. Beltz, 29, of Soldotna; who were both bleeding from recent cuts, according to troopers.

When the troopers returned to Robertson's home, they found a bedroom door in the back had been smashed.

Inside the home, picture frames, light bulbs, the oven door, a coffee pot and glass doors were all shattered. Blood stained many of the broken items, according to police.

Robertson was still cleaning up the mess on Monday.

When Cosselman and Beltz were brought into the Soldotna Police Department for questioning, they both admitted to being drunk, according to police.

Cosselman told police that Robertson's son owed him money, but Cosselman denied breaking into the home.

Beltz told police he was drinking alone at Mykel's Restaurant before he left to walk home. He said he "blacked out" and didn't come to until troopers were putting him in handcuffs. He couldn't explain the cuts on his hands, according to police.

Both men have been charged with first-degree burglary and criminal mischief.

All in all, Robertson considers himself fairly lucky.

"It's not like they backed up a U-Haul and started hauling my stuff away," he said, cracking a smile.

The lesson, Robertson said, is to re-evaluate his home's security. He was thankful to have tapes of the incident because they could be useful as the case progresses. But now Robertson is thinking videos are not enough.

"I consider myself pretty security conscious, but how far do you go?" Robertson said. "Hell, they could take a chainsaw and cut through the garage door if they really wanted in."

Andrew Waite can be reached at andrew.waite@peninsulaclarion.com.