More car break-ins in Carmel

Car break-ins across the Central Coast continue to rise. This past weekend, 10 cars were broken into in one Carmel neighborhood.

According to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Department, all of those cars were left unlocked. Still, it caught the Mission Fields neighborhood by surprise.

The Sheriff’s Department has arrested 7 people over the past few weeks in connection to car break-ins.But deputies continue to deal with the crime spree.

“Undoubtedly it’s a group of people, or groups, feeding off each other,” Commander John Thornburg said.” It’s the middle of the night, they see a car, they check if it’s unlocked, and they steal stuff. That seems to be the pattern that’s going on.”

Fred Klepich, who lives in Mission Fields, had two of his cars broken into Saturday.

“I had a wet suit and some other items in the car, but they didn’t take anything,” Klepich said. “I think they’re just looking for money.”

The Sheriff’s Departments wants those who live in quiet neighborhoods to now be aware of potential car break-ins.

“Hey if you see something, especially at 1, 2, 3 o’clock in the morning, that’s in a neighborhood that’s normally very very quiet, give us a call,” said Thornburg. “It doesn’t mean they’re doing something wrong, just means we can send someone over to take a look.”

The thieves aren’t looking for anything in particular, just targeting unlocked cars and stealing whatever valuables they can get their hands on.