NORTH BEND, Wash. — Two North Bend neighborhoods are on edge after being hit by a couple of bold burglars.
The burglaries happened early Monday morning in neighborhoods not accustomed to attracting crooks.
In one burglary, they got away with thousands of dollars worth of property, and the homeowner slept right through it.
One concerning factor is that a couple of these homes were occupied when these burglars were inside. The homeowners didn’t wake up and, incredibly, neither did their pets.
Resident Bob Morrell said he was surprised, “Yes, extremely actually,” he said. “We’ve never had this in the 30 years I’ve been here.”
Morrell says that his house was the thirteenth home built in his Wood River neighborhood, and he has watched as new houses and new neighbors have moved in.
“I’m kinda surprised but not surprised due to the growth we’ve had out here, too, so... North Bend’s grown quite a bit,” said Morrell.
Surveillance video shows two people checking for unlocked cars in at least two North Bend neighborhoods just before 2 a.m. on Monday. Police say they stole garage openers from the cars, using them to get inside the victims’ homes.
In at least two homes, the owners and their pets slept through it all. Which meant they weren’t able to alert the police until they woke up.
“We were notified by the calls at 6 a.m., and they trickled in from there until about 10 a.m.,” said spokesperson Melinda Black with the Snoqualmie-North Bend Police.
The concern from community members is that these burglars were able to do their work so quietly, that no one in the homes woke up.
“The brazen acts of these criminals is a little concerning. It has produced a lot of fear in our community. So, we’re taking action so that we do extra patrols,” said Black.
She also advises residents not to leave their doors unlocked - to their cars or their homes.
After talking to us, Bob Morrell thinks he, too, might have been a victim. The door to his camper was open when he woke up.
“Makes me think,” said Morrell. “I’m going to lock the camper up tonight, for sure.”
Police say they do have some leads. The crooks stole some credit cards and were using them in South King County, so police believe they may have descriptions.
Anyone with information can contact the Snoqualmie Police Department at their non-emergency phone number: 425-888-3333.
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