Three suspects committed a residential burglary of an occupied home on Friday evening. The suspects are unknown and at large.
On Friday, January 19, 2024, at about 7:30 p.m., our 24-hour dispatch center received a call from an occupant of a home in the 700 block of Center Drive who reported that someone had just broken into the house while they were inside. Officers responded immediately but the suspects had already left the scene.
The investigation revealed that the occupant, a woman in her forties, had been housesitting at the residence for a friend. She initially heard noises in the backyard, then the sound of voices, and finally the sound of glass breaking. When she went to investigate, she came face-to-face with a stranger inside the living room. She immediately ran to a bedroom, locked the door, and called the police.
After reviewing surveillance footage, officers were able to determine that three male suspects wearing all dark clothing got out of a dark-colored sedan parked on the street. They entered the home after breaking the glass of a sliding door in the rear yard and left three minutes later in the dark-colored sedan heading westbound on Dana Avenue. Officers later discovered that the suspects had broken a latch on a locked side yard gate to get into the rear yard. The surveillance footage is not available for release.
The occupant described the suspect she saw as a male wearing dark clothing, a face mask, and a beanie. Police are actively investigating this crime.
At this time, it is not known if the suspects stole any property from the home. Minimally, they had rummaged through a couple of rooms prior to fleeing.
Most residential burglars commit their crimes during the day, when homes are more likely to be unoccupied and the chance of a confrontation with a resident are correspondingly reduced. If you have a side yard gate, police recommend putting a lock on it to prevent easy unauthorized access to your property; it is rare that suspects attempt to defeat locks and/or latches, like they did in this particular case. Police also recommend securing all windows and doors overnight. If you choose to hide a key outside your residence in the event you ever get locked out, recognize that involves a potential risk; as an alternative, consider leaving a spare housekey with a trusted neighbor. For more crime prevention tips to help you stay safe, visit www.cityofpaloalto.org/StopCrime.
Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call our 24-hour dispatch center at (650) 329-2413. Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to [email protected] or sent via text message or voice mail to (650) 383-8984.
