Christmas is a time for giving

Certain burglars in Sonoma had an easy time of it this week, browsing residential streets for unlocked cars, getting in, finding keys or the remote control garage door openers, and either driving off in the car or, using the remote, getting into the garage, and then the house.
Sergeant Dave Thompson of the Sonoma Police Department described an amazingly simple MO: “This guy’s just wandering around the street in the middle of the night, probably between midnight and 5 o’clock in the morning and he’s checking cars to see what’s in there. And that could include registration, and garage door openers.”
Seven such incidents are currently under police investigation. Six occurred in one day this past week:
• In the 800 block of Palou Street, a perpetrator found an unlocked Ford Expedition and in it a garage remote which gave easy access to the owners’ home.
• In the 400 block of Chase Street, a perpetrator found an unlocked car and a remote, but the barking family dog apparently scared him away before he could steal anything.
• In the 800 block of 2nd Street West, deputies discovered a car with the door ajar; the owners reported a fencing sword missing.
• In the 900 block of Amedeo Court, a deputy noticed a garage door open; the homeowners said they’d heard something in the early hours and had looked outside to see someone running away. The fencing sword from Second Street was found on the hood of their car.
• In the 300 block of Chase Street, a man heard a noise, woke up and looked out the window and saw two suspects with flashlights trying to start his daughter’s car with the keys she had left in the car; they fled when the resident chased them.
• In the 100 block of Manor Drive, suspects again found an unlocked car, got into the house with the remote garage door opener (while the residents were sleeping), and took an iPod and the contents of a purse; the thiefs left in the owners’ Durango.
Sergeant Thompson said it was not unusual that people could sleep through a burglary. “People sleep with radios on or fans on, or they may think it’s someone else coming home; you just never know.”
His advice to people during this holiday season is to be cautious, lock the car doors every time, and never leave valuables in the car. A car, with items inside, is attractive to a thief, and when people are busy, they get careless. “People are leaving gifts in their cars, in plain view. They’re leaving packages and bags—things that say, ‘I just went shopping.’ Thieves get the message and get to work.”