Police Investigate Possible Connection Of Recent Spike In Underground Parking Burglaries
NORTH HOLLYWOOD (CBSLA.com) — Police are investigating whether a large number of recent burglaries from cars parked in underground parking structures may be related.
Despite signs and certain preventative measures at local underground apartment structures, when the gates open, burglars continue to make their way it to steal property.
"You feel violated of course," burglary victim Joshia Burgess said. "You kind of lose any sense of security that you may have had."
Burgess is one of five residents at his apartment on Burbank Blvd. in North Hollywood whose cars were robbed by a man, who was recorded by a security camera.
The suspect opened doors to vehicles that were unlocked, and broke into locked ones, according to police.
"Everything was emptied out, and kind of thrown around," Burgess said. "They made away with a set of headphones and an expensive camera that was in my car."
Also captured on video was a woman, who pulls in to the structure, not knowing that the suspect is just a matter of feet away from her, inside a car. She walked away from the scene unharmed.
"Anything with an underground parking structure, it has a potential to be a victim," LAPD North Hollywood officer John Catalano said. "Just in the last two weeks alone, we've probably had fifteen-to-twenty vehicle burglaries, just in my area."
Video footage from different gated apartment garage, on Ostego St., showed a suspect smashing several car windows back in December. Investigators are looking into whether the suspects in the videos may be the same man.
Police want to remind residents to lock car doors and not leave garage openers inside their vehicles.
"If they took property from the car, and they took the remote control from you, then they'll have access to that garage," Catalano reminds.
