Auroraadvocate.com - Police investigating a rash of break-ins

by Brent Hovey

Reporter

Aurora -- A 25-year-old Aurora man was arrested July 31 after surrendering to police.

He was charged with one count of burglary and one count of auto theft for an incident in the Lakes of Aurora. Police are investigating to see if he may be connected to other recent thefts.

Police Chief Seth Riewaldt said there were three reported break-ins and one attempted break-in July 23, all on South Sussex Court in the Lakes.

The following week, more attempted break-ins were reported in the same neighborhood, along with a car being stolen.

The suspect was charged in connection with one break-in and the car theft.

Riewaldt said police set up a stakeout July 29 and 30 at a Lakes of Aurora house that had been burglarized before, which led to the suspect's arrest July 31.

Riewaldt noted the house was broken into the previous week and had a set of keys stolen. The suspect had a tendency to return, so police kept an eye on the property.

"Night-time burglaries are extremely rare in Aurora," the chief said. "The pattern was that [the suspect] went back to the same house, and we feared for a tragedy. People were arming themselves so we didn't want anything to happen."

Otherwise, Riewaldt said there wasn't a pattern as to what houses were targeted. In some cases, doors were left unlocked and in others there was forced entry.

"PEOPLE HAVE gotten to the point where they feel very comfortable [in their neighborhoods] and don't lock their doors all the time," the chief said.

"We need them to take responsibility, lock their homes and cars, and not leave valuables laying out in plain sight."

The other Lakes of Aurora burglaries and attempted burglaries are being investigated, as are several in the Geauga Lake area.

Police believe the incidents in Geauga Lake are separate from the ones in the Lakes, but could be connected among themselves.

Riewaldt said detectives are working hard on the cases, and he is confident the string of burglaries will stop.

In the Geauga Lake area, three burglaries were reported July 24 to 30 and four thefts from cars between July 19 and 23. Three of the latter occurred July 19.

Two thefts from cars involved unlocked vehicles, and in another case a window was left down.

"If you leave valuables sitting out and cars unlocked, that's inviting theft," Riewaldt said, adding residents should trust their intuitions and be responsible.

"We don't want people to think every noise they hear at night is robbery, but we [police] only have so many eyes," he said. "If you see something unusual, call us. We'd rather check out a dozen false calls than have something happen to a resident."

E-mail: bhovey@recordpub.com

Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3115