Once again, a street-facing security camera has captured detailed footage of an infuriating crime in Bernal Heights. This latest incident was non-violent, fortunately, but also terribly common.
A neighbor on Elsie narrates the security camera video [Dropbox-hosted] that shows a would-be thief breaking in to her family’s car:
My husband’s car got broken into [during the week of April 7, 2014] in front of our house on Eslie, and we have it on video. It’s not as riveting as the recent robbery video that Bernalwood posted, but it’s interesting to see how they do it.
This happened at about 2am. You see a car driving slowly along the street, close to the parked cars. I am guessing they are looking for Hondas/Acuras, because they have shaved keys. They then stop in my neighbor’s driveway, and two people get out.
The first guy works on my husband’s car (black Honda) for a while, apparently not noticing that the rear passenger window (the small panel behind the main window) had been knocked out in an earlier break-in. The second guy starts working on other cars on the street. It’s hard to see because the windowframe is blocking him, but you can see him start to work (unsuccessfully) on my visiting mother-in-law’s Prius behind the Honda, then you can see his shadow as he goes across the street.
The first guy eventually gets in through the driver’s door and gets all the way into the car and shuts the door. He was rifling through stuff on the inside (everything was all over the place in my husband’s car this a.m.), and then he pops the trunk and looks inside. My husband’s car has been broken into so many times that he doesn’t leave anything – even pennies – in there. Eventually, the first guy gets out and goes back to the waiting car, and the second guy comes running up and hops in, and the car drives off.
Bernalwood 
So you’re saying it took him 2 minutes to break into car with a open window?
Well, we can at least be thankful we’re not attracting intelligent car thieves.
But on the bright side, he didn’t smash the window of the open door (which happened to me a few months ago)
So I’m not convinced that I should get security camera and pay subscriptions for video storage and whatnot. Nobody can be identified, no license plates can be read. All they tell us is that crime is happening. Can’t wait for one of these videos to deliver some satisfying results.
Doesn’t anybody have car alarms??
You can hear some in the video – but they go off so often that the thieves don’t even seem troubled by them.
Gotta get these cameras down at street level. If you can’t capture faces or license plates then its pretty useless to the police.
I don’t particularly like these “bestbuy” dropcam level cameras. For one they aren’t intended to be used outside and second you have to pay a recurring fee. Looks like this person is filming from inside their window upstairs. They caught the break-in, but now what?
I feel for you, Elsie Street neighbor! It must be infuriating to see your personal property being violated, right in front of your “nose,” so to speak! It’s bad enough when that happens and it’s not captured on video, but to see the perps in action–well, it would make me crazy. I’m glad nothing worse happened, at least.
This is brazen right here! They are not scared or nervous in the slightest – they’re doing this DIRECTLY under a bright street lamp. Taking a leap here but it seems like they are so bold because perhaps they may be prepared to fight back or take down someone who crossed their path. Hoping the get-away vehicle was identified somehow but it appears off-screen.
My wife’s car (’02 Honda Accord) got broken into that same week (4/7) on Eugenia near Bennington St. They broke the back small window and went through the car. Didn’t seem like they took anything but annoying to replace the window.
If anyone sees a nicely-dented red 1989 Honda Civic hatchback with missing moulding on the right door, please let the police know and post here. Was stolen from east block of Ripley Wed PM/Thurs AM. THANKS!
hooray. my lovely wife saw the car enroute to the vet’s this morning. had been abandoned on Harrison nr 24th. contents upended, hopefully my prescription sunglasses are still there. no broken glass.