Crime & Safety

'Door Knock' Burglars Come Calling in San Carlos

Two homes, one on Rosewood Ave. and one on Howard Ave., were unoccupied at time the of the burglaries Monday morning.

San Mateo County sheriff’s deputies responded to two residential burglaries in San Carlos Monday morning, one located in the 900 block of Rosewood Avenue and the other in the 1900 block of Howard Avenue.  

Deputies say the time frames for both of these crimes occurred between the hours of 9:00 am and 11:30 am.  Both of these residences were unoccupied at the time of the thefts.

Prior to the Rosewood burglary being discovered, a nearby resident later told deputies that a white colored SUV was seen driving slowly back and forth on the street, but did not call 911 and report the suspicious activity.  

Earlier in the day, a vehicle described as a white SUV, occupied by two Hispanic males and one Hispanic female was seen stopping at a residence in the area of Cordilleras and Howard.  The female exited the vehicle and went to the front door of a residence.  An alert next door neighbor, who saw the female, called 911 and went outside to get a better description.  When the female saw the neighbor, she ran back to the SUV and it sped off south on Cordilleras.

Investigators believe that a common method of operation in recent burglaries has been for the suspects to knock on the front door first. If someone answers the door, the suspect will ask a question, ask for directions or for someone that doesn't live there, appear lost, try to sell something, etc. After doing this, they walk away with little fear of being reported to police. If no one answers the door, they take that as an all clear sign to try a side gate, and if found unlocked, they will go to a side or rear door to break in.

Sheriff's deputies caution residents not to open the door but be sure to let it be known they are home, and to try to get a description and direction of travel. Any suspicious vehicles or persons should be reported to the Sheriff’s Office immediately by dialing 911.

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