DUNEDIN, Fla. — Pinellas County deputies are investigating after several cars had their windows smashed and belongings stolen, as parents were watching a little league baseball tournament.
Investigators say it happened around 7:00 p.m. Thursday night near Greater Dunedin Little League.
“None of us heard anything and the alarms in the cars never went off,” says Casey Cyree who found one of her SUV windows shattered after leaving her son’s game.
“We leave the game and seven of us find our windows smashed, and our cars victimized,” Cyree added. “They were less than 100 yards from us and robbed us blind in less than a couple minutes.
Handbags, laptops, cash and medication were all reportedly stolen. To put a price on it, Cyree says they took “upwards of $3000 from just my car alone.”
Cyree says her car was locked and none of her valuables were sitting in plain sight.
“I guess what they wanted, they were willing to break the window and take regardless of if they knew what was there or not,” she added.
But there’s a chance those opportunist thieves may have known was in there, according to police.
“Sometimes folks are watching from a distance, maybe at a restaurant next door, they're watching across the parking lot, and they're waiting to see people put things in the back of their car. And they know that's the target,” says Keith Bowling, crime prevention officer for the Largo Police Department.
Bowling says most of the car burglaries they see are due to cars being unlocked, but when it comes to smash-and-grabs, thieves will typically scope out places like parks or gyms.
“They know that folks aren't taking their purses with them. So that is an area that is targeted,” he explained, adding one of the few ways to protect yourself is to “just leave all of your valuables at home and take just the bare necessities with you — and keep them on your person.”
That’s a message Cyree is taking to the next tournament and sharing with fellow baseball parents. “Better to be safe than sorry,” she added.
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s office says they are actively investigating the Dunedin break-ins, 10 Tampa Bay will keep you updated if any arrests are made.