THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, November 15, 1995 TAG: 9511150204
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MIKE MATHER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 69 lines
Police are cautioning residents to be wary of a ring of brazen daylight burglars, believed to be gypsies, who slip into homes in upscale neighborhoods to steal silverware.
Detective Ray Pickell said residents of the North End have been victimized at least eight times this year and several times in 1994. The burglars have escaped with more than $100,000 in silver, he said.
The most recent burglary was last week. The North End's Bay Colony neighborhood has been particularly hard hit, police said.
Pickell said the victims are often elderly residents who are doing yard work when the burglars slip in. While residents are working in the back yard, the burglars enter an unlocked front door. And if the residents are working in the front yard, the burglars sneak around to a back door.
Once inside, they steal quickly and cleanly, never ransacking a home.
``They know fine silver,'' Pickell said.
The thieves are believed to be Eastern European gypsies responsible for several thefts in Virginia Beach and in other cities throughout Hampton Roads, Virginia, and the East Coast.
No one knows what happens to the silver once it is stolen. It doesn't turn up in area pawn shops, police said.
Pickell said the burglaries are fairly simple, and preventable. The burglars usually work like this:
A man drives a four-door sedan, typically bearing out-of-state rental license plates, into an upscale neighborhood. Riding with him are at least two women, and sometimes more. The man parks the car and lets the women out. Then, they pretend to be joggers, domestic workers looking for employment or owners of lost pets. The men sometimes pose as lawn workers or roofers.
The women target houses shielded by woods or shrubbery. Sometimes they enter homes that border golf courses. But the homes they choose are also close to main roads for quick getaways.
The burglars enter homes, gather up the silver from dining rooms, and remove the booty in pilfered pillow cases or shopping bags.
Then, they meet their ride and escape.
A few residents have confronted the women, but no arrests have been made. The home owners told police the burglars spoke in broken English.
Typically, the burglars strike in the spring and fall when people are outside doing yard work. Other than that, there are no patterns. That makes catching them difficult, Pickell said.
``The neighborhoods are going to have to get involved,'' Pickell said. ``In this type of crime, the problem will not go away until someone is arrested.''
To report suspicious people, residents should call the nonemergency line, 427-5616. But to report a possible burglar, they should call 911, Pickell said. ILLUSTRATION: TIPS ON PROTECTING YOUR HOME
If you are working in the yard, keep the doors you can't see
locked.
Be skeptical of door-to-door solicitors and ask to see
identification.
If your house has an alarm, use it.
Take regular inventory of your valuables. Record them with
pictures or on videotape.
Keep an eye on your neighbors' property. Report suspicious people
and vehicles.
KEYWORDS: BURGLARY by CNB