The Cupertino Courier Task force forms in response to burglaries Number of break-ins continues to increase By Steve Enders Despite efforts to keep homeowners on the lookout for culprits, sheriff's officials said that over the last two weeks the number of residential burglaries in the area has continued to increase. Investigators believe two recent burglaries are the latest in a string of 60 break-ins that have plagued the area for the past seven months. About half occurred in Cupertino. The others took place in the southwestern corner of Sunnyvale and in areas of San Jose and Saratoga that border Cupertino. In response to the crimes, Santa Clara County Sheriff's Sgt. Mike Flood said he's forming a task force this week with San Jose and Sunnyvale police investigators to share files and brainstorm strategies to catch the perpetrators. "We're just trying to get a meeting together to see what we've got," he said. "Obviously, the jurisdictions are separated by streets, but burglars don't know jurisdictions." Police in Sunnyvale have obtained a photograph of an Asian woman they think may be linked to the crimes. The photo was taken at a Sunnyvale ATM on Aug. 4 as she attempted to take out a cash advance with a stolen credit card. Sunnyvale detective Anthony Drago said he is waiting for the bank to verify whether she withdrew any money. Drago believes the woman may be working with an Asian male, about the same age. A San Bruno ATM camera snapped his picture a week later as he attempted to take a cash advance from a stolen car. Another photo obtained by Sunnyvale police shows what looks like the man and woman together outside the Sunnyvale bank, but the quality of the picture is too poor to tell whether they are also the culprits in the other photos, police said. Investigators said they also can't be sure the two are connected to the Cupertino burglaries, but they're at least wanted for questioning about using stolen credit cards. Flood said in the San Bruno case, the man was able to withdraw money because the victim's personal identification number was written on the backs of the cards. Drago said burglars often obtain PINs easily, since people commonly use Social Security numbers or birthdates, information found on other cards in the same wallet or purse. "We don't recommend [doing] that," Flood said, adding that the burglars may also have more sophisticated means of cracking a personal code. Investigators believe the last time the suspects hit a Sunnyvale home was in May, but that doesn't mean the thieves have gone away. At press time, the most recent burglaries reported in Cupertino took place two weekends ago. The first occurred on Oct. 16 on Shelly Drive, just east of De Anza College between 5 and 10 p.m. The suspects broke in through the home's rear window. Once inside, they ransacked the house and made off with the homeowner's jewelry. The next night the perpetrators hit another Cupertino home, this time on Lockford Court near Stelling Road and Rainbow Drive. Sometime between 7:30 p.m. and 2 a.m., burglars broke into the house through a bathroom window, dug through the victims' belongings and made off with jewelry. Flood believes these cases are related to the others because of the thieves' method of entry and by the way they ransacked each house. Also, as in a majority of the other cases, the homeowners were Asian. Flood and other investigators think the burglars might be Asian because they usually target Asian homes. Flood said he didn't know why Asians are being singled out. Flood said he's been trying to let the public know about the burglaries so police can gather tips. So far investigators haven't gotten any, and they probably won't get any at least until the next weekend comes, Flood said dryly. [ Back to Contents Page | Cupertino Courier Home Page | Archives ] This article appeared in the Cupertino Courier, October 28, 1998. ©1998 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.