By Elizabeth Cloutman
Four Los Altos Hills homes have fallen victim to a stealthy jewel thief since the beginning of May, according to the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office. The most recent incident occurred May 10, when the thief entered a home on Vista Del Valle Court and took three watches and several other jewelry items.
The Los Altos Hills thefts echo cases in Saratoga in recent weeks and two other incidents that occurred in the hillside town in January and March, said Capt. Dennis Bacon of the West Valley Patrol Division. Sheriff’s deputies have been unable to determine the culprit in any of the cases.
Bacon did not officially confirm the opinion of some residents that the recent break-ins may be connected to a dozen burglaries that took place last fall over a six-week period between early October and Nov. 21, although some aspects of the cases appear similar.
“(John Spagnola, the lead detective on the cases) is comparing similar cases in the past for MO and prior arrests in the area involving similar MOs,” Bacon said. Spagnola was unavailable for comment last week.
Many of the burglarized homes this are located near the I-280 corridor. The thief or thieves typically entered through an unlocked door or window at the rear of a home, sometimes while the homes’ residents were in another part of the home. In most cases, the homes’ alarm systems were not turned on, and by the time residents realized they had been burglarized, the suspect was gone. The incidents often occurred between sunset and midnight.
On May 2, the thief entered Page Allo’s Green Hills Court home and took pearls from the master bedroom as she sat watching television elsewhere in the house. Her neighbor fell victim a day earlier when someone entered the home through an open bathroom window.
A Berry Hill Court home was burglarized May 4 when the thief pried open a bathroom window and took jewelry and some other items from the home.
In an earlier, apparently unrelated incident April 24, a real estate agent encountered two people she did not know inside a vacant home on Stonebrook Court and requested they identify themselves. They complied with her request. When the real estate agent later determined there were items missing from the home, the suspects were arrested.
Los Altos Hills residents have been shaken by the numerous burglaries. An article about the recent burglaries appears in the most recent town newsletter. On May 16, the city council requested that City Clerk Pat Dowd notify residents who are on the town’s emergency notification e-mail list about the recent spate of burglaries.
“The citizens of Los Altos Hills seem to be on heightened alert,” Bacon said.
In response to residents’ concerns in recent months, the Sheriff’s Office has responded by increasing patrol during high-probability hours and doing nighttime surveillance, Bacon noted. The department has also brought in K-9 units, a San Jose Police Department Air Unit and used FLIR (Forward-looking Infrared) night heat-seeking vision scopes that can locate a person in remote areas by sensing body heat.
Unfortunately the thief or thieves have managed to elude capture. Except in the Stonebrook Court incident, no homeowner, neighbor or sheriff’s deputy has ever encountered a suspect inside or near any of the victims’ homes. A single footprint in one home last fall and an unidentified glove in a home several weeks ago are the only evidence the thief or thieves left behind.
