22 replies to this topic

[Mrs.D]

We are still figuring out what exactly occurred today, but I thought I would post with what information I have now.

I arrived home to find our front hose pulled out towards our front door and the water on (we have a sprayer so it was just leaking a bit). After further investigation I notice that our front mat was on a tericotta pot by the door and on the door jam there is a dig out of the molding by the lock (as if to try and push the door in). I also found a cigarette that was dropped by the side of the house. The person who dropped it did not put it out because the line of ash was still perfectly placed. I have no idea if it has been there for weeks or was just dropped today though.

FORTUNATELY, we have fantastic neighbors across the street that noticed something. There was another neighbor walking two dogs and the guy from across the street came to talk to her about them. They were talking in front of our house and as he was walking away a woman pulled into our driveway. He said that she had a feather duster and a spray bottle in her hands and that he didn't think anything of it- probably just our cleaning lady. We don't have a cleaning lady. The guy from across the street said that his mom was sitting out front after he went inside and so she is going to come over when she gets home to give us more information. I really want to believe that the person is a cleaning lady and just had the wrong house. Unfortunately, there are a few things in the way of this theory.

1. The hose was still out and the water was on. IF when she couldn't get in, she decided to spray down our walkway...there would not still be dirt and leaves on it. She would have also turned off the water and would have put the hose away. My guess is that she used the hosing down of the walkway as a distraction for the fact that she was looking for a second key--we do not have a second key placed anywhere outside our home.

2. She clearly tried to push on the door to get in-the dent in the molding is new.

As I said, I don't have all the details and once we do-we will decide whether to call the police or not. However, I thought that even if this was an innocent situation, it reminds us to pay attention to the people in our neighborhood. I am so thankful to have neighbors that pay attention and it will make me more aware in turn.

I was about to hit send when I realized that I didn't mention the Police Log for Folsom Police. I was shocked to see how many thefts have occured in the last several days.

[Mrs.D]

Update:
We called the non-emergency line and a policeman came to take our report. He looked at our door more and actually found more new scratches in the metal along side of the door that were consistent with a screw driver or something. I brought up that I had noticed on the police log that there were several burglaries of cars recently. He confirmed and added that many home burglaries have occurred recently. Apparently they are not all the same people because there are several different M.O.s. We are fortunate because someone saw this person and we know that she was acting like she belonged here as a maid so that people didn't notice her forcing the door. The officer wanted to encourage our neighbors to call the non-emergency line if they see someone new in the area and they want to be reassured that the person belongs there.

BTW- I am going to post something on the mailboxes in our neighborhood to notify our neighbors.

[Nancy]

Wow. Thanks for posting about this. I wouldn't have thought about a woman posing as a maid forcing a door open. Scary that there are so many home burglaries going on too.

Nancy

[ChipShot]

Can I ask you what street you are on? I am also in Broadstone and very concerned about this trend in Folsom. Thanks.

[Dave Burrell]

The best deterrent for buglers is a dog - get one, a big one - they'll bark their head off at anyone who comes near the house and there's no way in heck the dog will let any strangers into the back yard for concealed entry and if you let the dog in at night, I pity the fool who would dare break in at that time... my dogs would rip their nards off.

[Mrs.D]

The best deterrent for buglers is a dog - get one, a big one - they'll bark their head off at anyone who comes near the house and there's no way in heck the dog will let any strangers into the back yard for concealed entry and if you let the dog in at night, I pity the fool who would dare break in at that time... my dogs would rip their nards off.

ChipShot- we are on Grantham Court in Windor. I hesitated to put the street down and then I realized it will be on the police report.

Davburr-
We do have a fantastic dog that hardly ever barks...but when she does, people notice. She stays inside during the day and I am really hoping that when the lady was pushing on the door, our dog scared the you-know-what out of her and she decided to get the heck out of there. Had she actually made it into the house, I don't know if our dog would have continued to be on guard or just go back to her lovable self.

[ChipShot]

The best deterrent for buglers is a dog

What do you have against buglers ??

[attachment=1139:bugel.jpg]

[Jenncez]

The best deterrent for buglers is a dog - get one, a big one - they'll bark their head off at anyone who comes near the house and there's no way in heck the dog will let any strangers into the back yard for concealed entry and if you let the dog in at night, I pity the fool who would dare break in at that time... my dogs would rip their nards off.

LMAO I haven't heard that word in years!

[Mrs.D]

Thank you so much for the humor! I needed the chuckle.

[Orangetj]

Do you have any potted plants out front? My guess is that she was using the hose to pretend to water while she looked through/under any potted plants for a spare key. Either that, or she used it to wash her fingerprints off of the door or anything else she touched. Not sure that would work, but it wouldn't surprise me if that's what she was doing. Glad to hear the scum bag didn't make it inside of your house.

[Mrs.D]

Do you have any potted plants out front? My guess is that she was using the hose to pretend to water while she looked through/under any potted plants for a spare key. Either that, or she used it to wash her fingerprints off of the door or anything else she touched. Not sure that would work, but it wouldn't surprise me if that's what she was doing. Glad to hear the scum bag didn't make it inside of your house.

Yes we have one pot by our door (no plant in it right now, but lots of dirt). It was pretty obvious that she was looking for the key. Our door mat was actually on the pot when I got home. The officer confirmed that if people see her spraying things down and looking normal, then they stop paying attention and not notice her playing with the door.

No finger prints were taken by the officer. I don't think that it is a part of the protocal for handling attempted burglaries. My guess is that prints leading to an arrest are quite rare in actual burglaries too. There would probably be so many different finger prints on the door that the manpower to sort them all out would not be worth it.

The lesson learned is that neighbors that pay attention are great neighbors to have. If you see something out of the ordinary- call the non-emergency number. The officer made it clear to me that they would much rather come out and confirm that the person is supposed to be there than try to piece the details together later.

[cw68]

The lesson learned is that neighbors that pay attention are great neighbors to have. If you see something out of the ordinary- call the non-emergency number. The officer made it clear to me that they would much rather come out and confirm that the person is supposed to be there than try to piece the details together later.

I hardly agree and try to cultivate relationships with neighbors. They don't have to be my best friends, but you should know who they are, when they go out of town, etc. On my block most of us tell each other when we're going to be away and we look out for each other on a regular basis.

[mylo]

Doesn't hardly agree mean agree only a little? Did you mean whole-heartedly?

[cw68]

Doesn't hardly agree mean agree only a little? Did you mean whole-heartedly?

yes.

[benning]

yes.

or maybe heartily?


(can't believe I'm away so long and this is how I choose to post - what's wrong with me?)