MARICOPA, AZ (AZFamily) — Home security cameras have become a popular way to help make sure your personal space remains safe from intruders. However, there have been case after case lately where home security cameras are on but burglars are breaking in anyway.
It happened to Pnina Brown from Maricopa. “It’s kind of uneasy,” said Brown.
Last week, a man was caught on her security cameras inside her home around 1:30 a.m. while the family was asleep upstairs.
Brown said her sons forgot to lock the garage door that night, so the man slipped in and got into their kitchen and living room. She said he stole money, shoes and AirPods. However, she’s grateful he did not hurt her family.
“We could’ve been killed. We could’ve been harmed and it makes me sick to my stomach to think about had he come upstairs,” said Brown.
She said when her family woke up in the morning hours after the break-in, they noticed all their cameras inside the house were facing down.
Brown has beefed up her security system and said she will be watching out for her family and her neighbors.
Maricopa Police Department Sgt. Kevin Mellor said officers are patrolling the city after multiple homes were broken into. He is also asking the public to practice what’s called the “9 p.m. routine.”
It’s Saturday and all you wanna do is…sleep?! No problem. It’s always #9PMRoutine time somewhere in the world. Check your doors & windows. Make sure your vehicle is locked and your garage door is closed. Make sure nothing is sitting on your porch, and then turn in. pic.twitter.com/tIc6xdNACa
— Maricopa Police Dept. (@MPDPIO) September 16, 2018
Sgt. Mellor said before bedtime, families should make sure all doors and windows are locked and remove any valuables from their vehicles.
“We see a lot of burglaries in our city where it’s a crime of opportunity,” said Sgt. Mellor.
Over in Chandler, another mother is also planning to upgrade her security system after thieves hit her house despite having a doorbell camera and motion-sensing lights outside her front door.
Carissa Thomasson said her truck was parked outside her driveway when someone broke the driver’s window after midnight. They used the garage door remote that was inside the truck to open the garage.
She said three mountain bikes were stolen, which are worth thousands of dollars.
Carissa Thomasson said three mountain bikes were stolen.(Carissa Thomasson)
Thomasson said she heard the noise, but when she ran out, the burglars had taken off. “It feels really violating to have someone go through the effort to break into your property,” said Thomasson.
She said a neighbor’s security camera captured a white pickup truck driving around the neighborhood. Thomasson believes the thieves spotted her truck’s tailgate pad and knew they owned bikes.
Thomasson believes the truck is the same one connected to another burglary in Ahwatukee. The homeowner in Ahwatukee posted his security video on a Facebook group page that showed two people sliding under his garage door but quickly leaving.
A thief broke into a Maricopa home, left, and two others tried to get into an Ahwatukee home, right.(Viewer photo)
He said they stole his garage door remote as well to get in.
A different security video also shared on the same Facebook group page showed thieves breaking into a work van parked out on a home’s driveway.
All of those cases were caught on camera, but it did not keep the thieves away.
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