February 9, 2007

Police, Evergreen residents meet to discuss burglary spree

By Carol Rosen
Staff Writer

About 50 people attended a meeting on Feb. 7 at J.F. Smith Elementary School to discuss a recent spate of burglaries in the Ranch area of Evergreen. San Jose Police Captain Michael Sterner told the residents that they could stop the thefts by making sure that all first story windows and doors are locked for the night and alarms are set.

“Without a target-rich environment, the burglars move on,” he said.

All the burglaries have been at night, he said, and all occurred in two-story homes in which the residents left a bottom floor window open for ventilation. The burglars, he said, remove the screen, climb in through the window, take any items of value that can easily be carried away—purses, wallets, cash, credit cards, laptops—and typically get out the same way they came in without attracting any attention. In only one case did the burglars enter through a window and exit by the front door.

“They are in and out in 30 to 40 seconds,” Sterner said.

In one case, the window was open but the alarm was set and as the thief crawled in the alarm started chiming, scaring the thief off before he or she could take anything.

The kitchen window is the number one point of entry, Sterner said.

He and several others, including Lt. Gilbert Torres—who also lives in the area, reiterated the importance of making it a part of residents’ night time routine to check the grounds around the home and ensure that all points of access are locked before retiring.

San Jose Police Captain Michael Sterner cautions people to keep their first floor doors and windows closed and locked at night. Burglars have gotten into homes in the Ranch, Hilltop, Hillstone and Bel Aire areas by climbing through open and unlocked bottom floor windows. It takes the thieves less than a minute to steal wallets, purses, cash, credit cards and other easily carried items and leave. Making sure doors and windows are locked automatically prevents the thefts. Photo by Carol Rosen

In addition, he asked those attending to call if unknown cars are parked in the area, especially those late at night. While some people simply come out to look at the view, others could potentially be burglars. “We found one person at Hilltop checking the view. He has since been arrested,” Sterner said.

Most of the burglaries are happening on Haffler Parkway. Saturation patrols are at each end of the parkway, Sterner said.

The burglaries began last September on the east end of Haffler and have progressed west and into Hilltop in Shady Hill. Hillstone and Bel Aire are two other areas the burglars have attacked. There have been at least 20 burglaries, with Sterner and Torres indicating that more have likely happened, but have not been reported.

Sterner cautioned that the pattern appears to be three or four burglaries at a time followed by a two to three week break before they start up again. “These burglaries are not typical; they are sporadic,” Sterner said. “Most burglaries happen on Friday nights into Saturday morning. These burglars may hit three homes on a Thursday night and then nothing happens for two to three weeks.”

Just this week, police have arrested seven people, he added. They have connected these alleged burglars to a string of burglaries, but none which have taken place on Haffner Parkway. However, they continue to work on the case. Sterner has assigned patrol cars to the detective unit, so the area is more thoroughly patrolled, although a shortage of officers makes it harder, he said.

Sterner and Vice Mayor Dave Cortese noted that the city has not cut the police or fire budgets, but staffing is being held at 1998 levels. Cortese said that while city revenues are increasing, the budget still remains tight and other departments are cut to bare bones. Chief Rob Davis has asked for an increase in trained officers over the next several years, adding at least 500 through 2013. How much council members can increase the police force budget, however, remains a question. Attrition without replacement also has decreased numbers. There are, however, 40 cadets currently training to be San Jose police officers, Torres said.

Despite the current staffing level, Sterner said the SJPD is still managing to arrest many of the burglars. For example, a number of burglaries happened last summer, but most of those responsible were caught and remain incarcerated, he said. Although the police department is confident that the summer burglaries are related to those beginning last September, it’s likely not all the culprits are behind bars, Sterner added.

Altogether, about 20 homes have been burglarized, he said. He told residents attending the meeting to call the department even if they aren’t sure if their information is important. “We give these calls high priority, absolutely call us, call 9-1-1,” he said.

The officers provided handouts delineating “How to beat the burglar.” The front shows various methods of protecting your home—leaving lights on inside and exterior lights at the front and rear of the home, possibly through the use of automatic lights and timers. The back shows different types of locks and antitheft devices.

Finally, a member of Neighborhood Watch discussed the importance of participating in such groups. It allows the neighbors to get together so they know each other and can look out for each other and their homes as well as discussing how, when and why to call the police, what different locks are available and other problems that may come up.