The Cupertino Courier
News
Residential burglaries hit during holidays; arrests
By Hugh Biggar
Burglars targeted Cupertino immediately after Christmas, hitting several homes and businesses.
While some of the burglaries had similarities to the so-called "dinnertime bandit," law enforcement officials said there was nothing definitive connecting those crimes.
On Jan. 9, Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety officers arrested Larry Bryan, 53, of San Jose, on burglary charges. Officers responding to a report of a burglary found Bryan at the front door of a home. Bryan bolted and was chased by officers.
As a part of the investigation, officials also arrested Bryan's wife, Joy, 51, as an alleged accessory.
"Evidence obtained in a search warrant of his residence links [them] to residential burglaries," said Sunnyvale Lt. Dan Pitts.
In another possible break in the Cupertino burglaries, Sgt. Dan Rodriguez of the Santa Clara Sheriff's Office said an arrest had been made in one case.
Rodriguez said a man who had been discovered in a home by its owners and mistakenly walked to the front door had been picked up.
"The arrests might be associated with the 'dinnertime bandit,' but it's nothing definite," Rodriguez said.
Seemingly dormant since last spring, the "dinnertime bandit" had targeted homes of Asians in Cupertino in the last few years. Typically, those responsible entered homes in the early evening hours and sought gold jewelry.
There was a spike in burglaries in 2005. The 49 burglaries of Asian homes led to community forums and three Cupertino residents established a reward for information on the crimes.
After a lull in reported crimes with similar dinnertime characteristics, at least two appeared after Dec. 25.
On Dec. 29, at about 7:45 p.m., a person broke into a home on Rollingdell Drive and stole $780 worth of jewelry including gold-plated and silver pieces.
Rodriguez said, the sheiff's department has "some very promising leads" in the dinnertime bandit cases.
In the arrest of the Bryans in Sunnyvale, Pitts said the scale of their alleged activities was not yet clear. "We don't know how far back it goes."
To prevent residential burglaries, the Santa Clara Sheriff's Office recommends locking all doors and windows (especially side doors and bathroom windows), not leaving a key under a mat or flowerpot and leaving tools out of site.
Since calls to 911 are routed to a dispatch center in Vallejo, the office also recommends individuals program their cellular phones with the number for Santa Clara County Communications, 408.299.3233.
Individuals with additional information about these crimes can call the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office substation in Cupertino at 408.868.6600,or the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety at 408.730.7120.
