The APD would like everyone to know about two unusual home burglaries that happened on the 14th in the 3500 block of Lometa and the 16th in the 3800 block of Lenwood. The burglaries are unusual because both were occupied homes that were entered during the night time. In the Lometa incident, the suspect broke a wooden panel out of a back door and was able to reach in and unlock locks to gain entry. The resident thinks the home was entered between 3:00 and 6:00 AM. The suspect took a flat screen television. In the incident on Lenwood, the suspects went over a wooden fence in the alley, broke into storage buildings in the back yard, then removed screens to try to open windows before prying open a back door to enter. In that case, the female resident’s purse was stolen from the kitchen. The male resident’s pants, with the wallet still in them, were stolen from a bedroom in the home. Officers later found the pants-missing the wallet-in the alley behind the home. The suspects also burglarized one of the home owner’s cars before stealing another car, a black 2005 Dodge Magnum with hail damage. It is still missing at the time of this release. In that case, a neighbor believed that he heard a noise coming from the back of the home at around 4:00 AM. That noise may have been the back door being forced open.
Night time home burglaries are relatively uncommon. Residents should be aware that these types of crimes have happened recently. They happened within a few blocks of each other, but can happen in any part of town. Make sure your back door is of solid construction, with heavy duty dead bolt locks and other door hardware. If you see someone that looks like they may be prowling behind houses at night, call the Amarillo Police Department at 378-3038.
