At our most vulnerable: A group of criminals is breaking into our homes while we sleep

CTV News

3 hours ago

There have been more than 30 reports of overnight residential break-and-enters in the past several weeks. It's happening all over the city.
It's late when Joe or Jane Calgary gets home.
They shed shoes, shoulder bag and contents in a trail toward the table nearest the door they may or may not have locked.
They tuck in their partner, maybe their kids, maybe their dog.
They read for a spell to let go of the day before heading off to bed themselves.
It never occurs to them there could be someone waiting for that last light to go out.
But, with an increasing likelihood, it's possible.
'It's not unheard of to have nighttime break-and-enters, but to have a series like this—to have as many as we're having—is very troubling,' said Sgt. Rob MacKenzie with the Calgary Police Service.
There have been more than 30 reports of overnight residential break-and-enters in the past several weeks.
It's happening all over the city.
'These crimes are being committed by a group of individuals that we think are working together,' MacKenzie said.
Again and again, people's homes are being entered while they sleep, often through an unlocked door or window.
They wake up to find their things missing—maybe small trinkets and petty cash, maybe the family car.
Very often, it's the family car.
In 20 of the reported incidents, vehicles were stolen.
'They're opportunistic thieves—they know some people are lax in their home security,' MacKenzie said.
'They're mainly targeting vehicles.
'When people are home at night, their vehicles are home, and their keys are usually in a very predictable place.'
It's maybe a better outcome than the alternative—waking up and encountering their intruder.
It has happened in a couple of cases.
'Fortunately, at this point, when that's happened, the offenders have fled. We haven't had any physical confrontations,' MacKenzie said.
That's the last thing police want.
'We're pleading with homeowners not to confront these individuals and to retreat to a point of safety, whether it's back in the bedroom or a bathroom where they can lock the door, and then call 911 immediately,' MacKenzie said.
'It's an unpredictable situation, and we don't want anyone getting hurt.'
Resources have been dedicated to curbing these incidents.
And police are confident they're making progress.
'We have identified a number of suspects, and we're actively and aggressively going after these individuals,' MacKenzie said.
Meanwhile, police suggest locking windows and doors even when home and not leaving items in obvious places.
Police also suggest investing in a safe, motion-activated or timed lights, alarms or cameras.
And police are offering an outline of a nightly household routine, as well as other tips, at calgarypolice.ca.
Suspicious activity can be reported to police by calling the non-emergency line at 403-266-1234.
If it's an emergency (a break-in has occurred or a break-in is in progress), call 911 instead.
'We rely heavily on our partnership with the community, and we want—we need—residents of Calgary to identify suspicious activity, suspicious vehicles, suspicious people and (tell us),' MacKenzie said.