Ground floor break-ins continue to plague the Shelbourne Street corridor and University Heights area.
Between Feb. 7 and Feb. 14 Saanich Police received seven new reports of break and enters in the area. The break-ins were reported as ground-floor, patio door entries committed in the late afternoon and early afternoon, matching a string of 14 break and enters from Nov. 25 to Jan. 5.
However, it had been a month without such a report from the area.
“In all seven of the new break and enters, entry has been gained via the ground-floor patio door,” said acting Sgt. Jereme Leslie.
“We cannot say, with certainty, that all of these incidents are related or involve the same suspect(s), however, there appears to be a similar pattern,” Leslie said.
The Jan. 5 incident was believed to be the last of the Shelbourne corridor ground floor break-ins. In that incident the resident returned home to find an burglary in progress. The homeowner chased and tackled the solo intruder outside, though the suspect got away.
On Saturday, a pair of residential break and enters were reported in Gordon Head, closer to the University of Victoria. However, these are not believed to be connected to the ground-floor entries along the Shelbourne corridor.
Saanich Police are actively investigating the break and enters and the major crime detectives continue to seek new leads in the Jan. 27 sex assault and robbery that took place on Church Avenue.
Saanich Police are reminding the public to ensure doors and windows are secured and valuables are out of sight. Police also suggest homeowners inspect the locks on their doors and windows to ensure they are in working order.
Anyone with information about these incidents is asked to contact the Saanich Police non-emergency line at 250-475-4321 or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).