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Mountain View police are investigating a spate of auto burglaries that occurred late last month near the Santiago Villa Mobile Home Park.
Fourteen vehicles parked on Inigo Way and Space Park Way were broken into sometime in the late evening Tuesday, July 29 or early morning Wednesday, July 30, according to police spokesperson Monica Leon.
“In each case, suspects gained access to vehicles by smashing windows,” Leon said in an email.
Ellen Miller, a Santiago Villa resident, saw the damage while taking her dog for a morning walk on July 30. The auto burglaries left glass strewn all over the streets and sidewalks, making it dangerous to walk in the area, especially with dogs, Miller said.
There the value of the stolen items ranged widely, with some people reporting that nothing was taken from their vehicles while others reported stolen property worth as much as $3,360, Leon said. The items that were taken included personal documents, tools, clothing, jewelry and cash.
There also were four auto burglaries reported on California Street the same night, but it is unknown if they are related to the auto burglaries on Inigo Way and Space Park Way, Leon said.
No suspects have been arrested, but police are working to identify the people responsible, Leon said.
Miller, who has lived at Santiago Villa for more than 20 years, said that there have been a few isolated incidents of vehicles being burglarized in the past, but nothing of this magnitude before.
“It does give you pause, walking at night,” Miller said. “And it makes me think twice about where to park.”
I’m one of the victims. I’ve been parking my car here overnight for about a year — sometimes even with the windows down — and nothing ever happened. On the evening of July 30, everything seemed normal, but the next morning, July 31 around 7 a.m., I saw a crowd of people and four police officers on the street. I thought maybe there was an accident or they were handing out tickets. But then I noticed every car had the same kind of damage.
When I reached my car, I was hoping I’d been spared… but no — the side windows on the left were smashed. I had around $300–$400 in cash in my wallet inside the car, which was a stupid mistake. Instead of heading out for the day, I was staring at a wrecked car, missing $400, my driver’s license. They probably broke three windows because I had 5% tint. In all the time I’ve parked here, I’ve never seen anything like this happen before.