Only On 9: Burglar May Have Captured His Own Likeness On Cellphone Video
VENICE (CBSLA.com) — A burglar in Venice may have captured his own image on a stolen cellphone and that could lead to the man's capture.
Andrea Fujii talked to the homeowner who says the prowler accidentally recorded his own image.
It's a story that is Only On 9.
Drew Rosen didn't think anything of it when his iPhone didn't turn up. It's an iPhone he strictly uses for home security.
"That's all I was using it for," Rosen says. "A surveillance camera."
But he noticed an alert that his phone caught something. A suspected thief had recorded himself stealing the phone.
"He goes in," says Rosen, "and he picked up the phone. He turns on the surveillance, videotapes his face, and you can tell he turns it off and puts it in his pocket."
The suspect only stole the phone and left.
The theft apparently happened when Rosen's 15-year-old daughter was sleeping just a couple of rooms away.
"That's the really scary stuff," Rosen says. "There are people sleeping in the house when this guy came in."
Police say they're not sure if this prowler is responsible for other crimes in the area. But with 30 of these types of burglaries committed in the area since the beginning of the year, they can't rule it out.
"He entered through a possible unlocked door. We've been letting the public know, lock their doors, lock their windows," LAPD detective Gustavo Martinez said.
The LAPD says burglaries with residents home have actually decreased in the area. They say the decrease could be partly due to their educating the public.
Rosen says he's now learned the lesson.
He says he will be double checking to make sure his doors and gates are always secured.
Rosen is hoping, in the meantime, that someone recognizes the thief and turns him in.
"The police can use this ridiculous story to catch somebody who shouldn't be walking into people's homes and taking things that don't belong to them," Rosen says.
