(WSVN) - Sunrise Police have a warning for residents: make sure you lock your car doors. A rash of car break-ins has been reported, and now detectives are trying to track down several suspects caught on camera. 7’s Kevin Ozebek investigates.
You see this thief strolling up a driveway, hoping to find a car door unlocked. No luck here, but once an unlocked door is found, it’s easy to slip right inside.
April Beaton, Sunrise resident: “Knowing that someone came into my yard, went into my car and took my stuff, that’s a start. Next thing you know, what if they are coming into my house?”
April Beaton says, when she came home from shopping recently, she had her 2-year-old and groceries in hand and must have left the car unlocked.
The next morning, her Android tablet and phone chargers were snatched.
April Beaton: “That was the one night that I shouldn’t have left something in my car.”
Sunrise Police are urging everyone to be alert now that a host of homeowners have reported car break-ins. While some car windows have been smashed, most of the time, the burglars are stealing from cars that aren’t locked.
Officer Justin Yarborough, Sunrise Police Department: “Make sure your car doors are locked. Make sure that any valuable property has been taken out of it.”
Since September, doorbell security cameras have captured several thieves canvassing cars in the middle of the night. In the Windward Isles area, police say 13 vehicles were targeted in just 12 days.
Here you see a thief making sure no one is around before he peeks inside this car. There’s no valuables in view, so he heads to the next house.
Sometimes they work in pairs. One duo even went inside a car port looking for unlocked doors.
Kevin Ozebek: “It takes no time at all to lock your doors, does it?”
Julio Perez, Sunrise resident: “Just a simple click.”
Julio Perez is also trying to get the word out to lock up car doors. On the same night April had her tablet taken, a thief checked both his SUV and sedan.
All the doors, though, were locked.
Julio Perez: “Be cautious. Lock your car.”
April says, no matter how much she has to juggle as a working mom on the go, she has learned her lesson.
April Beaton: “I was really mad at the fact that somebody was in my car, but at the same time I was really upset with myself, because I know I could have prevented it by locking my door and taking out my valuables.”
And she hopes other Sunrise residents hear her story, since the car burglars are still on the loose.
CONTACT 7INVESTIGATES:
305-627-CLUE
954-921-CLUE
clue@wsvn.com
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.