Two Sunset Park Homes Burglarized Over Weekend

By Gene Williams
Staff Writer

March 22 -- Thieves broke into two houses in Sunset Park last weekend, police said, bringing the number of burglaries in the neighborhood to some two dozen since December 2.

Although both incidents -- which took place on the 2500 block of Cloverfield Boulevard and on the 1700 block of Hill Street -- appear to be similar, there are no suspects and it is not known if the crimes are related, said Lt. Frank Fabrega, the Police Department spokesman.

Both burglaries took place either Friday or Saturday, Fabrega said. In both cases, no one was home when the burglars entered through an unlocked door or window and stole laptops, jewelry and small items that could easily be carried away, Fabrega said.

In the incident on Cloverfield, the burglar climbed over a neighbor's wall, entered an unlocked window and worked quickly, according to an email that has been circulating in the neighborhood.

In addition to making off with jewelry, cameras and laptops, the thieves stole an address book/calendar that will be extremely difficult to reconstruct, said the email, which added that police responded quickly and conducted a thorough and efficient investigation.

In the incident on Hill Street, the burglar entered without breaking any locks or windows and made off with jewelry and a laptop, Fabrega said.

The items stolen over the weekend are similar to those taken during a burglary in early February.

Since the string of burglaries began drawing attention early this year, concerned residents have formed two new neighborhood watch groups, posted flyers and turned out for a community meeting with police.

Some speculate that the burglaries may be related, but in nearly all of the cases, there were no witnesses to the crimes.

Anyone with information regarding the weekend incidents should contact the Santa Monica Police Department at 310-458-8491.

Callers who wish to remain anonymous may also call the We-Tip national hotline at 1-800-78-CRIME (27463).