Armed Burglary Crew Targeting Concord Homes In Recent Weeks
A crew of burglars, at least some of them armed, have apparently been targeting homes in the Concord area in recent weeks – using garage door openers stolen from parked cars to access the victim’s garage and stealing tools and other items of value once inside.
Video made of the crimes while in progress appear to show armed crew members stationing themselves outside doors leading from one home to garage – apparently covering the door with a weapon to prevent surprise by a homeowner.
The crimes, apparently occurring throughout Concord over the “past several weeks”, are being carried out by several crew members who approach homes in the early morning, ransack unlocked cars in search of door openers and making entry.
On multiple occasions, the suspects were filmed while carrying guns. Police, as might be expected, are stressing the need for increased vigilance and heightened security by residents, none of whom have so far come into contact with the gang.
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We are just finding out about this now???
Sure, “they” are afraid you might go out and buy a gun for self defense.
Get some training if you do.
Firestone 11R
Why are police keeping information on crimes like this under wraps?
Well that’s not worrisome at all!!!
Is it happening citywide?
Leaving a garage door opener on your car is equivalent to leaving your keys in the car…
Because we don’t have a “need to know”.
And you don’t hear about lots of crimes in our towns, car stolen from my office building last week. ITWWOT.
The Evil One
The Evil One is a moniker given to me for being the “Evil Twin” of a retired CHP officer.
Firestone 11R
The best way for a city and it’s police department to say the city has no crime is for the city to not report the crime. serious incidents, such as this one, are simply not being reported in a timely fashion. The public and the press have been locked out of getting important, possibly life-saving information. I don’t leave ANYTHING in my car but it would have been good to know robbers were gaining access to homes in this way.
If you’re all that interested in every single crime, quit whining and being mentally lazy. Every city has a police log, and they’re available to the public. Just look online. Do your own research and quit relying on others. Or listen to the scanner (if available). Most people lack the desire to know “everything.”
That is true, take a look at Walnut Creek’s crime stats:
https://www.walnutcreekpdca.gov/data-and-transparency/crime-statistics
Not as pretty or “safe” as our city leaders would tell you.
Firestone 11R
If you’re interested in timely information about local crime, the answer isn’t “just check the police log.” Police logs are often delayed, incomplete, and don’t provide real-time situational awareness. That’s precisely why people ask about delayed press releases.
And “listen to the scanner” isn’t much of an option anymore in many places, because agencies have encrypted them.
Public information isn’t about satisfying curiosity, it’s about transparency and helping residents make informed decisions about what’s happening in their community. Expecting timely communication from a public agency isn’t laziness; it’s accountability.
And Jennifer, if knowing what’s happening in the community isn’t important, that’s a choice. But it’s a curious position to take while participating on a community news site whose entire purpose is to keep people informed. Clearly, a lot of us are here because we value timely local information.
You’re making my point about being mentally lazy. Some of us were taught to do our own research. If you really think you can dictate what LE reports, when they report it (if at all) or what the media decides to report (they can’t cover everything) you have control issues, and a sense of entitlement. There’s a difference between “staying informed” and insisting on knowing every crime that happens in every city. It’s self-explanatory, and I shouldn’t have to explain this to you.
If waiting days weeks or months for police to issue a bare bones listing of some crime on X street is your idea of research then go for it. But I think the obvious point here is that if there are a bunch of guys inside people’s garages with guns, the citizens might like to know about it. I guess I just don’t get your argument as it makes no sense to me. Maybe we should just agree to disagree. I’m here for the news and these guys still go out and get it.
Of course, the citizens want to know about it, but if you don’t understand that LE reports at their own discretion and so does the media, there’s nothing I can say to get through to you. And the city I live in updates the police log daily. It’s posted online for the general public. Learn to look it up yourself.
You’re arguing against a position I never took.
No one is demanding that law enforcement report every crime or that the media cover everything. The discussion is about a serious, time-sensitive incident where timely public information has value.
And “do your own research” only works when the information exists. If the press release is delayed, the police log hasn’t been updated, and scanners are encrypted, there is nothing to research. That’s exactly why people expect public information officers to communicate significant incidents in a reasonably timely manner.
That’s not entitlement or a control issue, it’s an expectation of transparency from a publicly funded agency.
Look, you chose to enter into an argument with me, when my first comment was directed towards comments that were complaining about how long LE took to report the crime, and why we didn’t know about this earlier. None of those commenters have said a word to me. To put it bluntly, I wasn’t talking to you. Nor was I talking to Doug. We clear? I’m entitled to my opinion (like everyone else) and if you don’t like it, stay in your own lane. Once again, I wasn’t talking to you. Nor are you going to change my mind. You’re not my mother. Don’t tell me how to think or how to post. If you want Concord police to satisfy your every whim and spoon feed on your timeclock, become the police chief. Or take your argument up with them. Or check the Concord police website. Thant’s what it’s for. And lastly, this is a Concord crime, and nobody on Claycord.com is complaining about how long it took, and most of the people posting on Claycord.com probably live in Concord. It’s a Concord based site. If anyone should be complaining, it should be the residents of Concord. Maybe they’re more down to earth.
Jennifer –
Seemed to us that people were expressing their opinions – and with clarity – and that’s what the comments field is for.
I agree with Jim. My two cents.
@Jennifer
The irony here is hard to miss.
You accuse everyone else of having “control issues,” yet your comments are one long list of instructions telling other people how they should behave: do your own research, quit relying on others, stay in your own lane, don’t respond to me, become the police chief, check the website…
Then, the moment someone disagrees with you, suddenly it’s “don’t tell me how to think or post.”
A public comment thread is exactly that—public. Everyone gets to express an opinion, and everyone else’s opinions are just as valid as yours.
The actual issue hasn’t changed: when law enforcement delays releasing information about a significant public safety incident, while other avenues of obtaining timely information have largely disappeared, it’s entirely reasonable for the public to ask why.
That’s not entitlement. That’s expecting transparency from a public agency, especially one that claims to be committed to transparency.
But, I am still left wondering what Claycord has to do with any of this? Nobody mentioned it until you did. Whether people on another website are complaining, or not complaining, is completely irrelevant to whether it’s reasonable to expect timely public information about a significant public safety incident.
The Concord Police released it in a timely manner exactly where they should’ve. On the Concord Police Dept. website. Funny how that works.
You cannot directly instruct police on when to report a crime to the media. Law enforcement agencies are independent of the press and have their own policies for releasing information.
First Amendment rights: The press has a constitutional right to gather and report information, but law enforcement is not bound to share details with any specific outlet at any time.
Police discretion: Each agency decides what to release, when, and to whom based on ongoing investigations, legal restrictions, and public safety concerns.
Legal boundaries: Police must follow laws about privacy, defamation, and court order. They can withhold information if it would harm an investigation, protect victims, or violate other legal protections.
We aren’t “instructing” anyone to do anything, but we can argue in favor of the release of information of value to the citizenry.
The police used to do this regularly on their own volition, but as the song goes: “the times, they are a’changin…“
As a veteran journalist, I understand why you want to report. I also understand this is an ongoing investigation, and if the police feel it would harm an investigation, they have every right to keep the information close to their vest. The general public needs to accept this and quit telling the police how to do their job.
Jennifer –
Not to belabor the point but we feel basic information critical to maintaining the safety and security of the public – perhaps alluding to break-ins of unlocked cars and the securing of those cars – might have helped head off a potentially lethal encounter the scenario for which, apparently, had been in play for weeks.
Your own post highlights the issue.
As you point out, law enforcement exercises discretion based on “public safety concerns.” I don’t disagree.
The question is whether delaying public notification about an active armed burglary crew actually advanced public safety.
If the suspects were still at large and targeting homes, wouldn’t timely public awareness help residents recognize suspicious activity, secure their property, and report relevant information?
Nobody here is arguing the police lack discretion. But rather questioning whether that discretion was exercised in a way that best served the public.
I prefer transparency for the public knowledge to aid in safety. There are a lot of incidents that don’t show up in police logs. I had a situation at my Dad’s house when the SWAT team came to the door at 12:45am because a fugitive was in the backyard. The gates were locked. They got a silent message and disappeared as quietly as they came to the door. I went into the kitchen and saw through the glass sliding doors a slim, young man walking slowly through the yard. He was caught soon after in the neighbors yard (we heard it). My guess is the SWAT team was using a drone or night goggles to track him. I looked in the local news and police logs for weeks. Nothing. This was in the San Joaquin Valley, not Contra Costa. I am sure this is happening more often than we realize.
Hi. We agree… it is. Thanks for writing!