We first wrote of an apparent “burglary flurry” in San Ramon on Saturday night as residents and neighbors began to realize a dedicated crew of thieves was in town and busy.
San Ramon PD Sgt. Bob Ransom on Monday confirmed that a total of six homes were broken into and a variety of items taken by a crew of at least three suspects who appeared to be randomly driving through neighborhoods in search of homes to hit.
Ransom said video collected from victims and neighbors that night confirmed they were dealing with a crew of thieves believed to be all male and all wearing dark clothes, possibly operating from a dark blue or black Mercedes with paper plates.
He said the crew “definitely knows what they’re doing,” and appear to be cruising neighborhoods looking for homes to hit at random.
“In some cases the victims have been away on vacation, in others they have been gone for only a few hours – the key is the house looks dark and unoccupied and that’s when these people hit,” Ransom said Monday.
In one case a homeowner returning from an evening errand ran into the trio as they were leaving their home – carrying something and running toward a waiting car. The crew appears especially interested in easily fencible goods like jewelry and electronics, Ransom said.
In most cases the thieves make their way into the backyard of a residence and break a rear sliding door or window to make entry, unafraid of cameras or alarms.
Ransom said the crew appeared to be working the eastern and western sectors of the city and appeared committed to entering homes only as no car burglaries were reported Saturday night.
He stressed a common sense approach to keeping burglars at bay, such as leaving a light on inside before leaving, alarming your home, installing cameras and registering your surveillance system with the city for use if you are burglarized… or perhaps getting a dog.
“We suggest having good communication with your neighbors, so they can call if they see people they don’t recognize at your home,” Ransom said.
Six in one day is a lot of burglaries. Thugs with paper plates again. If they ran into the trio, too bad they had paper plates. Any description of perps and the vehicle?
Six in one day is a lot, as you say. We just uploaded a video kindly forwarded by a victimized homeowner and police. You can see what we’re working with – these guys are covered up and gloved. Sparse description on the car but it keeps coming up the same way, so we’ll probably hear from this guys again, we think.
Please update with descriptions when you get them —
They don’t seem very concerned about getting caught or shot. They must do this a lot to stay this calm.
I think they’re very concerned about getting caught. They’re using paper plates, wearing hoodies with their hoods up, their faces are covered and they’re wearing gloves. Very organized, and hardly their first rodeo. Of course they’re calm. Nobody is home.
I’ll be waiting with my gun.
I hope they catch them.