Wauwatosa Suffering a Spike in Burglaries

Wauwatosa police released reports on five recent home burglaries that occurred over as many days, with several more logged but not yet approved for release.

On June 24, a resident of the 1800 block of 68th Street called in a break-in when she came home from work at 4:45 p.m. and found her side door standing open. A kitchen window was also open and the screen had been cut out. The homeowner said the window had been unlocked.

She and her husband found that their bedroom had been ransacked, with drawers pulled out and the contents strewn around the room. The woman was missing 12 pieces of valuable jewelry and a wooden jewelry box.

One neighbor recalled seeing an older model dark green or black 

colored sedan parked in front of the home at about 12:15 p.m., with the engine running. He said that after a couple of minutes it pulled away, but he could not describe any occupants.

On June 25, two burglaries were reported.

At 12:30 p.m., a resident of the 7500 block of Kenwood Avenue called police after she came home and found her cat out in the back yard. A patio door was open, as was a patio window, with its screen pushed in.

The woman found muddy footprints on the floor and a basement light on.

Police found two packages of hunting arrows opened in the basement but none stolen, and other things knocked over. The homeowner did not notice anything missing.

This time, two neighbors reported having seen an older black sedan parked in front of the victim's house that morning, but did not note the time. Neither could describe any occupants.

At 4:30 p.m., a resident of the 2000 block of Underwood Avenue reported her home had been burglarized during the day as well.

Her sister had been by about an hour earlier and found the side door open, but she thought her sister was home. She grabbed the fan and left, shutting the door.

The homeowner therefore found her outer doors shut, but once inside there were a number of room doors open that shouldn't have been, a things out of place.

The burglar had apparently come in through the bathroom window, leaving muddy prints on the bathtub and sink.

The woman eventually counted 83 pieces of property missing.

In this case, no neighbors were able to provide any information to police.

The next day, June 26, a resident of the 2400 block of 68th Street called police at 8 p.m. and reported her home had been entered within the past hour and cash and jewelry missing.

She had been out working in her yard since about 7 p.m. and left her side door unlocked. When she came in, she found her wallet missing from her purse and jewelry gone from her bedroom.

No neighbors could be contacted as of last report on that incident.

On June 28, a contractor working on a vacant home in the 4200 block of 94th Street called at 10:15 a.m. to report finding the house burglarized when he arrived to begin his day. Both the front and back doors were standing open.

Police found a back window open and a ladder lying beneath it, and a tour with the contractor quickly revealed that the stove and refrigerator had been dragged out, seriously marring the newly finished hardwood floor, doing an estimated $1,000 damage. Two snowblowers had also been stolen from the garage.

Not counting damage but only stolen goods, four Wauwatosa homeowners lost about $37,000 worth of property in the burglaries.